Hong Kong-based real estate manager ESR Group on Thursday said it was teaming up with US-based data center provider CloudHQ to jointly develop and operate a $2 billion data center campus in Japan.

The campus, located in Nanko Kita, Osaka, will deliver 130 megawatts (MW) of data center capacity over three phases. The first phase will be ready for service in June 2025 and provide 25 MW of data center capacity.

The seemingly insatiable appetite for artificial intelligence has triggered a rush into data center investments globally as real estate managers, private equity firms and global investors seek to capitalize on the frenzy.

ESR said the joint venture is a step forward in its accelerated strategy to deliver advanced data center solutions.

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"We have a strong conviction in the growth of the data center market in Japan and across APAC," Diarmid Massey, CEO of ESR Data Centres, said.