SK Hyper in talks to fund $350bn AI data-centre buildout, CEO tells Bloomberg

SK Group’s data-centre arm, SK Hyper, is in talks with big technology firms and financial investors to fund an envisioned US$350 billion AI data-centre buildout in South Korea, chief executive Chung Suk-geun told Bloomberg Television. (The Business Times)

The company has begun discussions with potential partners to finance 15 gigawatts of data-centre capacity in South Korea by 2035, Chung said. The first 5GW phase alone would require US$350 billion, including equipment. (The Business Times; also The Edge Malaysia)

“We are under discussions with many strategic and financial partners,” Chung said in the interview. “We want to be prepared for meeting the market demand by making data centres in Korea.”

SK Hyper aims to secure its first round of external capital by the end of 2026 or early 2027, followed by further fundraising over the next three to four years, with the overall cost shared between data-centre tenants and outside investors. (The Edge Malaysia)

The blueprint lands as markets gyrate on fears of an AI bubble. Chung said the company would pace investment to actual demand: “We are going to manage our risk appropriately, meeting with market demand.”

Set up in July as a unit of SK Telecom, SK Hyper is developing a 900-megawatt project in Ulsan alongside a previously announced 100-megawatt project for Amazon Web Services, and could begin generating revenue as early as 2027, ahead of its initial data centres’ planned completion in 2029. (The Business Times; also Dimsum Daily)