KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Property Bhd
(SimeProp) is in talks with banks for a loan of as much as RM3bil (US$714mil) to fund the building of a data centre that will be leased to Google, according to people familiar with the matter.
The proposed loan will have a tenor of five years and carry an extension option of as long as two years, the people said.
Discussions are ongoing and details could change, they added.
SimeProp didn’t respond to a request for comment.
SimeProp, part of one of Malaysia’s largest multinationals, is ramping up its presence in data centres to serve the boom in artificial intelligence (AI).
The AI frenzy has fuelled demand for funding the centres in Asia, resulting in a series of record-breaking loans for operators.
Bain Capital-owned Bridge Data Centres obtained a US$2.8bil facility earlier this year for operations in Malaysia.
Google announced in 2024 plans to build the data centre at Sime Darby’s Elmina Business Park near the Malaysian capital as part of a US$2bil investment. — Bloomberg
