The oversubscribed, sustainability-linked financing will help fund its EMEA data centre footprint
Global data centre operator, EdgeConneX, has secured an additional $1.9 billion in sustainability-linked financing to support its EMEA digital infrastructure expansion. The latest deal, which was marked by significant oversubscription from existing and new lenders, adds to EdgeConneX’s $2.9 billion in sustainability-linked financing, initially issued in October 2022.
With a growing European footprint of more than 20 facilities, EdgeConneX continues to expand its presence in the region, driven by strong global customer demand for cloud and AI infrastructure.
The Swedish-based infrastructure investment company EQT-owned data centre operator has now raised more than $7 billion in total green investments over the past two years.
The financing consolidates EdgeConneX portfolio across EMEA, transitioning it from stand-alone project-based funding to a more robust structured corporate debt package. The company said this latest transaction provides it with “enhanced financial flexibility” and a greater capacity to support projected growth throughout the EMEA region.
Part of the latest deal includes sustainability-linked margin adjustments. This feature directly ties the interest rate to EdgeConneX achieving predetermined sustainability objectives. While PUE measures sometimes do not work that well for operational data and multitenant data centres, to its credit, EdgeConneX is also looking to eliminate its waste and water footprint as it moves to powering its entire data centre platform with renewable energy sources by 2030.
Tripled capacity
Since EQT’s acquisition in 2020, EdgeConneX has more than tripled its capacity and expanded into Asia, Latin America and new European markets. Today, the company has a global footprint of 80 data centres in operation or development in more than 50 markets across North America, Europe, APAC and South America.
“The reception of this transaction reconfirms our status as an industry leading data centre developer and operator and reinforces our belief that responsible growth and operational excellence go hand in hand,” said EdgeConneX CFO Joe Harar.
“It showcases our ability to replicate this success on a global scale. This is a significant milestone in our journey towards leading the industry in sustainable practices, and we are excited about the future possibilities this opens up for EdgeConneX and our stakeholders,” he added.
“With this latest sustainability-linked financing deal, EdgeConneX is rapidly ascending as one of the largest financing issuers in Europe, underscoring our commitment to sustainability and innovation in the data centre sector,” said EdgeConneX SVP corpoate finance Eelco Holst. “Our team’s exceptional achievement was accomplished through dedicated efforts in cultivating a broad range of lending relationships, as well as close cooperation with the coordinators, advisors and EQT Infrastructure.”