Amazon has announced plans to invest a total of AU$20 billion from 2025 to 2029 to expand, operate, and maintain its data center infrastructure in Australia. The country’s largest publicly-announced global technology investment will support the growth in customer demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI), accelerating AI adoption and capability.
The planned investment is expected to put the latest cloud and AI capabilities into the hands of hundreds of thousands of Amazon Web Services (AWS) customers and partners, driving innovation at scale while ensuring local data residency and regulatory requirements are met. The Australian government’s Department of Industry, Science and Resources expects AI and automation to contribute up to AU$600 billion annually to Australia’s GDP by 2030.
The investment will support the expansion of three new solar farms in Victoria and Queensland, with a combined capacity of over 170-megawatts (MW). Once operational, these projects are estimated to generate more than 1.4 million megawatt hours of carbon-free energy annually, powering around 290,000 Australian homes.
AWS has already invested an estimated AU$467 million in renewable energy projects in Australia since 2020 and is committed to upskilling people in the country through various programs, including the AWS Work-Based Learning Program and AI Ready initiative. The company has trained over 400,000 people across Australia since 2017, empowering individuals to accelerate their careers.
The investment aligns with the Australian government’s vision to improve productivity and grow the economy through AI innovation. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the investment is an exciting opportunity for Australia to build AI capability using secure, resilient infrastructure. Matt Garman, CEO of AWS, stated that the planned investment deepens Amazon’s long-term commitment to supporting Australian organizations and helping them harness the opportunities offered by generative AI.
Source: https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/aws/amazon-data-center-investment-in-australia