Asia-Pacific data center capacity is projected to grow from approximately 32 GW in 2025 to 57 GW by 2030, with artificial intelligence (AI) workloads expected to drive the majority of incremental demand, a whitepaper showed Monday.

Singapore-based private equity firm Seraya Partners said in its report that the trend is representing the fastest expansion of electricity-intensive infrastructure in the region’s history, as approximately $2 trillion in energy transition investment may be required by 2030 to support rising digital and electrification demand.

According to the report, across Southeast Asia, in markets and locations such as Johor, data center power demand could expand several-fold by 2035.

Meanwhile, hyperscale operators are increasingly seeking 100 MW-plus campuses with firm, continuous power.

This is no longer optional backup capacity, but a secured, always-on supply capable of supporting high-density Al training clusters, said the report.

It also said large-scale AI facilities are increasingly requiring approximately 100 MW or more of power capacity, accelerating demand for integrated digital and energy infrastructure solutions.

Grid access and interconnection timelines are also increasingly determining where infrastructure can be built and scaled across Asia.

“As digital infrastructure scales, the constraint is no longer just capacity, but access to deliverable power,”

“AI-driven demand and power constraints are converging to reshape Asia’s next infrastructure cycle. This is creating a structural shift toward more integrated digital and energy infrastructure solutions across the region,” said James Chern, the Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer.

The report also highlighted that the energy transition environment has become more complex, with geopolitical uncertainty, policy shifts, and higher capital costs introducing volatility into energy markets.

As returns come under greater scrutiny and subsidy frameworks evolve, the ability to deliver reliable, cost effective power, particularly in proximity to digital infrastructure, is becoming increasingly critical.

Meeting this demand will require a more integrated approach to infrastructure development, it said.

Despite these challenges, the report opined that Asia Pacific’s underlying fundamentals remain strong.

It noted the region is structurally underinvested relative to the United States and Europe, particularly across transmission, distribution, and digital infrastructure.

Besides, policy stability in markets such as Japan, Australia, South Korea, and selectively in Southeast Asia supports long term visibility.

Structural gross domestic product (GDP) growth, industrial expansion, accelerating electrification, and continued capital reallocation toward Asia reinforce the region’s infrastructure investment outlook, it added.

It also sees capital deployment across Asia’s digital and energy infrastructure sectors remains active, as institutional investors continue to scale platforms serving hyperscale compute and energy demand.

The whitepaper also highlights several themes shaping Asia’s infrastructure landscape.

This is including the growing importance of grid access, interconnection timelines, and energy security in determining where infrastructure can be developed.

Besides, it foresees the rise of integrated digital-energy infrastructure models, including data centers paired with distributed energy, battery storage, and long-term power solutions.

It also foresees increasing investment opportunities across connectivity infrastructure, subsea cables, renewable energy integration, and energy efficiency solutions.

It also projects the growing divergence between markets with sufficient infrastructure readiness and those facing structural constraints around land, power, and permitting.

Meanwhile, the global GPUas-a-Service market is also projected to exceed $135 billion by 2035, with Asia-Pacific leading as the fastest-growing region.

According to the report, Al training and inference workloads, hyperscale cloud growth, electrification across transport and industry, and sovereign compute initiatives are materially reshaping regional electricity demand.

Japan’s accelerating generative Al programs, Korea’s industrial Al push, and Singapore’s data localization requirements are reinforcing the need for domestic compute capacity, it added.

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