YTL Power Targets 2.4 Gigawatts of Data Center Capacity in Malaysia by 2030

Expansion Into Sedenak

YTL Power International announced plans to double its data center capacity to 2.4 gigawatts by 2030, anchored by a new campus in Johor's Sedenak Tech Park. The expansion underscores Malaysia's growing role as a regional digital infrastructure destination after Singapore imposed restrictions on new data center projects.

SIPP Power, a subsidiary of YTL Power, will develop the 1.2-gigawatt facility approximately 28 kilometers northwest of the company's existing YTL Green Data Center Park in Kulai. The project has secured backing from Nvidia, which has already partnered with YTL on its Kulai site.

According to YTL Power, the company has completed 300 megawatts of capacity at Kulai, with an additional 200 megawatts scheduled to come online by the first quarter of 2027. The Kulai campus is expected to reach a total of 1.2 gigawatts by 2032.

Land Acquisition and Scale

SIPP Power has agreed to purchase 59 hectares of land within Sedenak Tech Park West from state-owned JLand Group, with an option to acquire another 162 hectares for future expansion. That could bring the total footprint to 221 hectares, positioning the site as one of the larger data center developments in Southeast Asia.

While YTL Power did not disclose the project's cost, industry analysts estimate the Sedenak campus could require at least $10 billion in investment to reach full capacity. The scale reflects the capital intensity of modern data centers, particularly those designed to support AI workloads and high-performance computing.

Yeoh Seok Hong, managing director of YTL Power International, described the Sedenak project as a strategic expansion of the company's digital infrastructure platform. He noted that the campus, together with the growing Kulai site, will strengthen Johor's position as a regional center for artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and digital innovation.

Regional Context

Malaysia has emerged as a major destination for data center investment in recent years, driven by competitive power costs, proximity to Singapore, and supportive government policies. The shift accelerated after Singapore placed a moratorium on new data center construction in 2019, citing land and power constraints.

Other global players have followed suit. AirTrunk, controlled by Australian billionaire Robin Khuda, recently committed $3 billion to build two data centers in Malaysia with a combined capacity of 280 megawatts. The country's pipeline of projects now includes facilities from hyperscale operators and colocation providers seeking to serve both regional and international clients.

Johor, in particular, has attracted attention due to its fiber connectivity to Singapore, access to renewable energy sources, and availability of industrial land. The state government has promoted Sedenak Tech Park and similar zones as part of a broader push to position southern Malaysia as a digital economy corridor.

The Yeoh Family and YTL

YTL Power is part of YTL Corp., a conglomerate established more than six decades ago by Yeoh Tiong Lay. His son, Francis Yeoh, now serves as chairman of YTL Corp., which has diversified holdings across cement, utilities, property development, and hospitality.

The family ranks among the wealthiest in Malaysia, with a net worth of $4.1 billion, according to Forbes. YTL Power's data center push represents a strategic bet on digital infrastructure as demand for AI and cloud services accelerates across Asia.

The partnership with Nvidia signals alignment with the chipmaker's regional expansion strategy. Nvidia has been building relationships with data center operators and cloud providers across Southeast Asia, seeking to position its GPUs as the standard for AI training and inference workloads.

Outlook

The timeline for the Sedenak campus extends to 2030, with phased development expected to align with demand from hyperscale cloud providers, enterprise clients, and AI startups. YTL Power's ability to deliver on the ambitious capacity target will depend on securing power supply agreements, navigating regulatory approvals, and attracting anchor tenants.

With both Kulai and Sedenak progressing in parallel, YTL Power is positioning itself as a major player in the Southeast Asian data center market. The company's scale and Nvidia partnership provide competitive advantages, but execution risk remains as capital costs rise and competition intensifies across the region.

For Malaysia, the investments represent a validation of its strategy to capture data center demand displaced from Singapore and to build a digital economy footprint that extends beyond electronics manufacturing. Whether Johor can sustain the infrastructure buildout while managing power and water resources will shape the state's trajectory as a regional tech hub.