PGIM Real Estate Closes Maiden Global Data Centre Fund at $2 B
PGIM and Equinix’s SY9x Data Centre in Sydney
PGIM Real Estate reached the final close of its first global fund, after securing $2 billion in committed funds.
GDCF, the property funds arm for US finance giant Prudential, is pursuing a strategy of build-fill-sell focused on the low latency hyperscale segment with opportunistic returns. In a press releaseMorgan Laughlin is the global head of data center investments at PGIM. The portfolio management team oversees the vehicle. According to the announcement, GDCF, since its first closing in mid-2023, has built a geographically diversified asset portfolio across data centre markets throughout North America, Asia Pacific, and Europe. PGIM made their first APAC data center investment in 2021, after forming a joint venture worth $575 million with US heavyweight Equinix. The joint venture was formed to develop and operate facilities at Sydney.
Laughlin stated that “achieving our $2 billion target raise represents an important milestone, which reflects strong investor faith in the sector and strategy.” Data centres are at the core of the digital framework, which is playing an increasing critical role in our economy and society. Global investors are increasing their exposure to the digital infrastructure sector in line with the recognition that it is important to our modern lives.
Ready to go
PGIM Real estate has committed more than $450 million of equity capital to its data centre investments. PGIM described fund backers as “a variety of global investors”.
Morgan Laughlin is the global head of investments for data centres at PGIM
By 2022, Equinix and PGIM will open their first xScale Data Centre
in Sydney called SY9x. As the first of the two data centres that will be developed and operated by the JV, the SY9x has a power capacity of more than 14 Megawatts and will be scaled to more than 28MW once fully built out.
The Equinix partnership was announced after PGIM raised a $1 billion total for its 2021-vintage 4th APAC value-add funds, which included data centers as one of its main targets for acquisitions. This follows earlier ventures by the fund manager in the sector, in the US and Europe.
Data centres and associated digital infrastructure offer a generational opportunity as digital demands in our societies and economies continue expanding at an astonishing pace.
Hyperscale race
PGIM’s latest fundraise follows Equinix’s last year’s partnership with Singapore sovereign giant GIC, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, to develop data center campuses in the US. The partners aimed to raise over $15,000 billion to fund the construction of hyperscale facilities which will eventually provide
According to the terms of the agreement, announced in September, GIC, CPPIB, and Equinix each hold a 37.5 per cent stake in the JV. Equinix holds the remaining quarter stake. The venture will also take on debt in order to increase its total investable funds to over $15 billion.
Toronto’s CPPIB revealed previously that it was partnering with private equity titan Blackstone to acquire Australia-based data center platform AirTrunk for $16 billion. The deal closed in December.
