Flagship project · Melbourne's northern corridor, Victoria
A gigawatt AI campus designed around its power.
A single greenfield freehold beside a 500 kV transmission corridor, with a formal 1,000 MW connection response from the state's transmission planner already in hand. Built as repeatable 250 MW modules towards 1 GW of IT load, with gas firming and 500 MWh of battery storage fed from a new 500 kV terminal station — the power process was run first, so the campus can be.
CAMPUS FLY-THROUGH · MASTERPLAN VISUALISATION · INDICATIVE
Why this site
Australia has no shortage of planned data centres. It has a shortage of energisable land — and a gigawatt, transmission-assessed greenfield site in metropolitan Melbourne is close to unrepeatable.
- 01 · 500 KV BACKBONEThe transmission line is 1 km away
Loads above 500 MW are unlikely to be supported on 220 kV-only terminal stations; they need 500/220 kV transformation. Few metropolitan parcels sit beside a vacant 500 kV easement.
- 02 · FIRST MOVEROne new terminal station per radius
The transmission planner will not support over-concentration of shared terminal stations. The first proponent to lock a location becomes the hub others connect to.
- 03 · FORMAL RESPONSERules-based, not a desktop enquiry
Most pipeline sites hold nothing more than an informal enquiry. This one holds a formal Connection Enquiry Response under the National Electricity Rules, with quantified system-strength and fault-level figures.
- 04 · SINGLE TITLEOne surveyed freehold lot, ~70 ha
No amalgamation risk and only two registered easements. Feature and contour survey complete; planning pathway identified under the state's development facilitation programme.
- 05 · GAS CONFIRMEDOn-site generation has a scoped pipeline
The gas network has confirmed the volume needed for 300 MW of firming via a new pipeline — the generation layer is engineered, not a concept.
- 06 · THE CORRIDORWhere the hyperscalers are already going
Global cloud operators and Australia's largest data-centre developers are all committed to Melbourne's northern corridor. This site sits closer to the CBD than the corridor's largest announced parcel.
Three supply layers
Transmission, distribution and on-site generation back each other up.
If the transmission programme lags, the campus starts on interim distribution supply and on-site generation, then transfers load to the 500 kV connection as it energises. No single bet.
New 500 kV shared terminal station
Cut-in to the adjacent 500 kV line, campus supplied at 220 kV. A contestable asset built by a nominated transmission service provider; indicative commissioning window 2029 under the planner's default programme.
Staged distribution pathway
4 MVA accessible today from two substations already inside the boundary. The distributor has responded to a 1,000 MVA enquiry with a staged pathway — interim supply, sub-transmission development, dedicated terminal station — and offered to lead the feasibility study.
Gas firming 3 × 100 MW + 500 MWh BESS
Gas volume confirmed achievable via a new 6–8 km pipeline. A grid-forming battery provides frequency response, black start and peak shaving — and is the natural remediation asset for the system-strength obligation.
Campus power architecture
500 kV in, 220 kV across the campus, 33 kV into each building.
Two independent 220 kV supplies to each of four buildings. Every 250 MW block has its own 220/33 kV substation; storage and generation sit on the same 220 kV campus bus.
The authorities have answered
Every service confirmed feasible. The 1 GW grid response is in hand.
The technical and regulatory groundwork that usually takes a developer years is already done. What remains is execution — pre-application, planning lodgement, feasibility studies, construction approval and the terminal-station build.
| Service | Position | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Grid · transmission | 1,000 MW Connection Enquiry lodged April 2026; formal response received June 2026 under NER clause 5.3.3. New 500 kV terminal station defined as the pathway; three arrangements assessed, all feasible; contingency limit and system-strength figures quantified. | Feasible · formal response |
| Grid · distribution | Distributor responded on interim supply for construction and commissioning and an initial portion of IT load; offered to lead the feasibility study. | Staged pathway |
| Gas | Network confirms the volume required for 300 MW of firming is achievable via a new 6–8 km pipeline. | Feasible · quantified |
| Water & fire | High-water-user request; joint assessment with the metropolitan water authority under way; main extension and storage sized to achievable flow. | Feasible · developer-funded extension |
| Sewer & stormwater | Extension routes identified; early engagement on discharge rates and detention. | Feasible |
| Communications | All major carriers have pit-and-pipe at the boundary; point-of-entry needs can be met. | Feasible |
| Land & planning | Single freehold lot, surveyed. Planning pathway identified under the state's development facilitation programme — the same route the corridor's largest announced campus is using. | Pathway identified |
Australian benchmark
Against every campus under construction in Australia, this is first-tier scale — and the only grid-connected one with generation designed in.
- This campus — masterplan1,000 MW
- Largest off-grid project, NT1,000 MW
- Largest under construction, Sydney400 MW
- Largest in Melbourne, west354 MW
- Melbourne west campus two300 MW
- Melbourne west, second operator252 MW
- Port Melbourne162 MW
Capacities as published by each operator (industry construction snapshots, 2026). Every listed grid-connected campus relies on diesel standby; this project designs gas firming and 500 MWh of BESS into the campus.
The 250 MW module
One module, repeatable four times within the 1 GW response.
Each module is a 250 MW data-hall block with its own 220/33 kV substation — sized to sit inside the 600 MW contingency limit and the planner's staged-load profile, so every repeat follows the same engineering, the same approvals and the same supply chain.
Ways to participate
Four structures that can be combined.
Behind-the-meter power JV
Co-own gas generation, BESS and on-site transformation; sell to the campus under a long-term PPA or tolling agreement. Infrastructure yield plus the right to tell the story as the energy-system owner.
Preferred supplier with a minority stake
Preferred supply of BESS, PCS, inverters and substation equipment, with minority equity in the project company. Export track record plus durable naming rights.
Development-stage investment
Enter before the planning application and participate through land, connection and approvals — capturing the step-up from "feasible" to "approved". Suits an investor building an Australian platform.
Technology demonstration and naming
A smaller commitment in exchange for energy-system naming, an on-site demonstration centre, joint announcements and industry-event priority. Suits brand and market-entry objectives.
Hard, quantified needs
System strength on 1,800 MVA, a 600 MW contingency, power-factor and reactive limits, interruptible-load duties — all written into the transmission response. Storage and power electronics are engineering requirements here, not a sustainability add-on.
OECD market, public rulebook
The planner's, market operator's and network's documents are public and verifiable — credibility that carries into Middle East and South-East Asian markets.
World's third-largest storage market
The national battery fleet passed 9 GW in mid-2026 with 33 GW of standalone storage in the connection queue, three-quarters of it grid-forming.
Important notice. This page is prepared from the project's Existing Infrastructure Review for preliminary information only. It is not an offer, investment advice or a commitment of any kind. The Connection Enquiry Response is a preliminary assessment under NER clause 5.3.3, not an agreement to augment the Declared Shared Network. Responses from network and utility operators are preliminary, indicative and non-binding and do not confirm availability of supply. All capacities, areas and timeframes are indicative and subject to change. Site identification, commercial terms, budgets and valuation are available under NDA only.
Power first. Then the campus.
Data room, technical workshop and participation structures for qualified energy, equipment and infrastructure partners.