Firmus Secures $10 Billion from Blackstone to Build Australia's AI Infrastructure Empire
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Australian AI infrastructure developer Firmus lands $10 bln debt package from Blackstone, Coatue
SYDNEY, Feb 9 (Reuters) - Australian artificial intelligence company Firmus said on Monday it had finalised a $10 billion debt funding package led by global private equity firm Blackstone (BX.N), opens new tab and Coatue Management, a New York-based technology investor. Firmus said the funding would be used to build the next phase of its Project Southgate, the company's initiative to develop AI training and inference infrastructure, which includes data centres, across Australia. The initiative, done in collaboration with CDC Data Centres and U.S. chip giant Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab is expected to reach a capacity of up to 1.6 gigawatts over the next three years. "The picks and shovels powering the AI revolution are one of our highest conviction investment themes, and we are excited to finance Firmus' continued growth," said John Watson, a senior managing director in Blackstone's Tactical Opportunities Group. "AI is driving one of the most significant infrastructure build-outs in decades, and we believe Australia can play a central role in that transformation." Firmus raised A$830 million ($582.41 million) in two separate equity placements last year that were backed by Nvidia and Australian investor Ellerston Capital, Reuters reported. ($1 = 1.4251 Australian dollars) Reporting by Scott Murdoch; Editing by Sonali Paul Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab * Suggested Topics: * Artificial Intelligence Scott Murdoch Thomson Reuters Scott Murdoch has been a journalist for more than two decades working for Thomson Reuters and News Corp in Australia. He has specialised in financial journalism for most of his career and covers the Australian financial services sector and superannuation. He is based in Sydney.
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Blackstone's $14b for Firmus is an all-in bet on Australian AI
What tech wreck? The artificial intelligence data-centre provider's $2 billion computer order shows how far the local AI story has come. Australian AI-factory hopeful Firmus has Blackstone's money, Nvidia's chips, is close to securing Meta as its big customer, and is awaiting what has to be the country's biggest shipment of computers - $2 billion worth - in the next six weeks. Its rapid rise from cooling technology start-up and bitcoin miner to AI infrastructure linchpin and wannabe centre of Australia's newest export industry, AI tokens, is taking shape.
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Australian artificial intelligence infrastructure developer Firmus has finalized a $10 billion debt funding package led by Blackstone and Coatue Management to expand its AI training and inference data centers. The company is awaiting a $2 billion computer order from Nvidia and is close to securing Meta as a major customer, positioning Australia as a potential AI export hub.
Firmus Lands Massive Debt Funding Package to Expand AI Infrastructure
Firmus, an Australian artificial intelligence infrastructure developer, announced it has secured a $10 billion debt funding package from global private equity giant Blackstone and New York-based technology investor Coatue Management
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. This substantial Blackstone investment marks one of the largest commitments to AI infrastructure development outside the United States, signaling strong institutional confidence in Australia's emerging role in the AI revolution.
Source: Reuters
The debt funding package will finance the next phase of Project Southgate, Firmus' ambitious initiative to develop AI training and inference data centers across Australia in collaboration with CDC Data Centres and U.S. chip manufacturer Nvidia
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. The project is expected to reach a capacity of up to 1.6 gigawatts over the next three years, representing a significant infrastructure build-out that positions Australia as a potential center for AI compute power in the Asia-Pacific region.From Cooling Technology Startup to AI Infrastructure Linchpin
Firmus' trajectory reveals a remarkable transformation from a cooling technology startup and bitcoin miner to a central player in Australia's AI export industry
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. The company is now awaiting what could be Australia's biggest shipment of computers—a $2 billion computer order from Nvidia expected to arrive within the next six weeks2
. This massive hardware deployment will enable Firmus to offer large-scale AI training and inference capabilities to global technology companies.The company previously raised A$830 million ($582.41 million) through two separate equity placements last year, backed by Nvidia and Australian investor Ellerston Capital
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. Combined with the new debt package, Firmus has now secured over $10 billion in total funding, demonstrating investor appetite for AI infrastructure despite recent volatility in technology markets.Strategic Positioning and Major Customer Acquisition
Firmus is reportedly close to securing Meta as a major customer
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, which would provide the company with a significant anchor tenant for its data center capacity. This potential partnership underscores how global technology giants are seeking geographically diverse AI infrastructure to support their compute-intensive operations, from training large language models to running inference workloads at scale.John Watson, a senior managing director in Blackstone's Tactical Opportunities Group, described AI infrastructure as "one of our highest conviction investment themes," adding that "AI is driving one of the most significant infrastructure build-outs in decades, and we believe Australia can play a central role in that transformation"
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. This statement reflects growing recognition that AI infrastructure development represents a multi-decade investment opportunity, with Australia offering advantages including stable governance, renewable energy potential, and strategic location for serving Asian markets.Related Stories
Implications for Australia's Technology Sector
The Firmus deal positions Australia to potentially become an exporter of AI tokens—the computational outputs from AI models—creating a new category of digital exports
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. As global demand for AI compute capacity continues to surge, countries with available energy, land, and technical expertise are attracting significant capital to build the physical infrastructure that powers artificial intelligence systems. Australia's combination of these factors, along with its proximity to growing Asian technology markets, makes it an attractive location for AI infrastructure investment.The 1.6 gigawatts of planned capacity represents substantial power consumption, raising questions about energy sourcing and grid integration that Firmus and its partners will need to address. As AI workloads continue to grow, the availability of reliable, cost-effective power will be critical to the success of Project Southgate and similar initiatives. Observers will be watching how Firmus manages energy procurement and whether it can leverage Australia's renewable energy resources to create a sustainable AI infrastructure model that could serve as a template for other regions.
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