An investor group is planning to build what’s been billed as one of the world’s largest AI data centers in South Korea at a cost of $35 billion, according to a statement released on Monday.
Investment company Stock Farm Road said it signed an agreement with South Korea’s Jeollanam-do provincial government for the construction of a data center that will deliver up to 3 gigawatts of power. That is almost three times as much as the planned capacity of a data center complex that OpenAI and SoftBank Group are building as part of their Stargate project in the United States.
South Korean data center project is expected to be completed in 2028
According to Stock Farm Road, an investor group that is spearheading the South Korean project, construction of the data center is expected to start later this year and be completed by 2028.
The company plans to put in $10 billion to kickstart the project and invest up to $35 billion over the course of the project. The data center is located in the southwestern region of South Korea, away from the capital, Seoul. The developments come as the data center market, which was at $219 billion in 2023 is seen increasing to $242.7 billion in 2024 before $584 billion by 2032 with North America expected to dominate the global data center market share.
“The facility will feature advanced cooling infrastructure, regional and international fibre bandwidth, and the ability to handle significant and sudden variations in energy load,” Stock Farm Road said in a statement, as reported by the Wall Street Journal.
“It will serve as a foundation for next-generation AI enablement, fostering innovation and economic growth in the region and beyond.”
Stock Farm Road.
AI training is notorious for consuming large amounts of electricity. Research group Epoch AI says the development of the largest AI models will likely require more than 5 gigawatts of electricity by 2030. Models are trained using advanced chips such as those manufactured by Nvidia.
Stock Farm Road was founded by Brian Koo, grandson of the founder of the electronics conglomerate LG, and Amin Badr-El-Din, founder and CEO of BADR Investments, based in London and Jordan, per media reports.
The company manages energy resources with data analytics and AI tools via its own energy-to-intelligence platform (e2i²).
The project to leapfrog South Korea in its quest for tech leadership
Stock Farm Road said it will deploy its experience in the construction of the data center as other parts of its business provide access to capital to fund the project.
Speaking about the South Korean data center, Amin Badr-El-Din said: “This is more than just a technological milestone; it’s a strategic leap forward for Korea’s global technological leadership.”
“We are incredibly proud to partner with Stock Farm Road and the Jeollanam-do government to build this crucial infrastructure, creating an unprecedented opportunity to build the foundation for next-generation AI,” added Badr-El-Din.
The development comes as businesses and countries are intensifying efforts into AI infrastructure particularly data center development as part of initiatives to enhance their services and stay ahead of the competition in the AI landscape.
Earlier this year, former US President Joe Biden issued an executive order as the White House was looking at increasing domestic construction of AI infrastructure.
According to the White House, the order directed certain agencies to make federal sites available for AI data centers and new clean power facilities, facilitate this infrastructure’s interconnection to the electric grid, fulfill permitting obligations expeditiously, and advance transmission development around federal sites.
“DOD and DOE will select sites where the private sector can build AI data centers and clean power facilities based on those sites’ accessibility to high capacity transmission infrastructure,” Biden said then.
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