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Brookfield Seeks Partner for Ascenty Amid Brazil’s Booming Data Center Market

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Brookfield Asset Management is reportedly looking for an investment bank to advise on the sale of a minority stake in Ascenty, a major data center operator in Latin America. This move comes as Brookfield, in partnership with Digital Realty, aims to attract a minority partner to fund Ascenty’s ongoing expansion, particularly in Brazil. The companies have approached local banks, such as Itaú BBA and Bradesco BBI, for the advisory role.

Ascenty’s growth plans align with Brazil’s rising status as a key global data center hub. Demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence is driving substantial investments, with estimates suggesting that over $10 billion could be funneled into Brazil’s data center sector over the next decade. Despite having fewer than 200 data centers, Brazil already ranks among the top 15 global markets. A report by Santander projected a 7.1% annual revenue increase for the sector from 2024 to 2028, outpacing the global average.

Brookfield initiated discussions with potential banks in 2024, aiming to complete the sale by the end of 2025. Founded in 2010, Ascenty currently operates or is constructing 34 data centers across Brazil, Mexico, Chile, and Colombia. These facilities are connected by an extensive 5,000-kilometer fiber-optic network. Although the valuation of Ascenty remains uncertain, its rapid expansion since Brookfield and Digital Realty’s $1.8 billion acquisition in 2018 indicates significant growth.

Ascenty’s expansion in Brazil is facilitated by the country’s availability of land, solid global connectivity, and an increasing renewable energy capacity, which makes it an attractive location for future data center investments. While competitors like Tecto Data Centers, Equinix, and ODATA are active in the region, Brazil’s potential for data center growth remains high, especially as energy constraints challenge other markets like the U.S. and Europe.

Market projections suggest Brazil’s energy load from data centers could increase substantially over the next decade, highlighting both the opportunities and challenges in expanding the country’s infrastructure to meet this demand. Official estimates suggest data center energy demand could rise to 9 GW by 2035, a massive increase from the current load of 671 MW, necessitating careful planning in transmission and distribution networks.

 

Malaysia Aims to Become Energy and Chip Manufacturing Hub, Says PM

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Malaysia is setting its sights on becoming a global leader in energy and semiconductor manufacturing this year, building on a surge in investments and a favorable economic outlook, according to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. The country is positioning itself as a key player in Southeast Asia, attracting foreign investors as it stands out for its economic stability, robust growth, and a strong currency—factors that have set it apart from regional peers facing political and economic challenges.

At an economic forum on Thursday, Anwar highlighted the country’s strong recovery in 2024, fueled by significant investments, particularly in renewable energy and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. He noted that inflation was stable, the Malaysian ringgit had remained strong, and the stock market had emerged as the region’s top performer.

For 2025, the Malaysian government aims to capitalize on the country’s strategic geographical position to strengthen its role in energy, talent, and supply chain diversification. Anwar expressed plans to refine Malaysia’s capabilities in key sectors such as oil and gas, semiconductors, and Islamic finance to establish the country as a global leader in each of these industries.

Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli also shared Malaysia’s ambition to produce its own graphics processing unit (GPU) chips, catering to the growing demand driven by AI and data center development. “We are hoping that we can start producing made-by-Malaysia GPUs and chips in the next five to 10 years,” Ramli stated.

As a major player in the semiconductor industry, Malaysia accounts for 13% of global testing and packaging. The government is targeting over $100 billion in investments for the sector, capitalizing on its potential to attract business from Chinese chip firms seeking diversification. Additionally, Malaysia has secured multibillion-dollar investments from leading companies such as Intel and Infineon, alongside digital investments from tech giants like Google. These moves have contributed to the country’s impressive economic growth in 2024, surpassing market expectations and making the ringgit one of Asia’s top-performing currencies.

 

iGenius to Complete $1B Data Centre Project with Nvidia by Summer

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Italian AI startup iGenius is on track to complete a $1 billion data centre project in southern Italy by the summer, utilizing Nvidia technology. The project, which will span five years, has prompted the company to extend its funding round from an initial target of 650 million euros. CEO Uljan Sharka shared that the new supercomputer built for the data centre will perform at an extraordinary rate, capable of executing 115 billion calculations per second. This marks a significant leap from Europe’s previous top supercomputers, which could handle only 0.5 billion calculations per second until last year.

The data centre will be powered by Nvidia’s advanced Blackwell chips, providing 35 times more computing power than their predecessors, while using 25 times less energy. The facility will house 80 of Nvidia’s most powerful servers, each containing 72 Blackwell chips. Southern Italy was chosen as the site for the project due to its surplus of renewable energy capacity, which will help meet the high power demands of the supercomputing operation.

iGenius, founded in 2016, is one of the few AI startups in Europe valued at over $1 billion, competing with other industry players such as France’s Mistral and Germany’s DeepL. The company recently launched Colosseum 355B, a large language model designed specifically for industries with stringent data protection needs, including finance, heavy industry, and government sectors. iGenius differentiates itself from competitors like OpenAI by providing open-source AI models for companies to run on their own infrastructure, allowing for greater control over sensitive data.