Keppel data centre fund hits US$1.1b of commitments at final close

KEPPEL Data Centre Fund II has achieved US$1.1 billion worth of total commitments at its final close with Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) joining as its latest investor.

In a press statement on Friday (Jan 21), Keppel Capital said AIIB made a US$100 million investment in the fund through a parallel fund structure, and another US$50 million through co-investments.

The asset management arm of Keppel Corporation added that the fund had also attracted investments from sovereign wealth funds, financial institutions, insurance funds, and pension funds.

Dongik Lee, director general of AIIB's banking department (Region 1), said the institution's latest investment will "foster the development and enhancement of hard digital infrastructure to bridge the digital divide by mainly investing in colocation data centres that mostly serve emerging Asia".

Keppel Data Centre Fund II was launched in December 2020 with a focus on investing in the data centre sector across Asia-Pacific and Europe. The fund's investors comprise a "diverse group" from both regions, according to Keppel Capital.

It is managed by Alpha Investment Partners, a private fund manager under Keppel Capital.

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"Working together with Keppel Data Centres, we are able to tap on the Keppel group's know-how in data centre operations excellence, sustainable technology and energy-efficiency to develop better and greener data centres, which is an increasing imperative for data centre operators. This will allow us to set our portfolio above the others to offer a wider range of services to our clients and more compelling returns to our investors," said Alvin Mah, chief executive of Alpha.

The fund's latest development is not expected to have a material impact on the earnings per share or net tangible assets per share of Keppel Corp for the current financial year.

Shares of the group ended S$0.07 or 1.32 per cent higher at S$5.38 on Friday, after the announcement.