Global investment firm KKR and Singapore Telecommunications are reported to be in advanced negotiations to acquire more than 80% of ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC), potentially securing full ownership of one of Asia’s largest data centre operators in a deal valued at over USD 3.9 billion (SGD 5 billion). If concluded, the transaction would rank among the biggest data centre deals in the region amid surging global demand for digital infrastructure driven by artificial intelligence and cloud services.
Under the proposed arrangement, KKR, which currently holds about 14% of STT GDC, and Singtel, with just over 4%, would acquire the remaining shares held by ST Telemedia, the data-centre business arm of Singapore’s state investment firm Temasek Holdings, giving them outright control of the company. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Singapore, STT GDC operates over 100 data centres with more than 2 gigawatts of IT load across more than 20 key markets including Singapore, India, Japan, and parts of Europe.
The advanced talks come after KKR and Singtel jointly invested about USD 1.3 billion (SGD 1.75 billion) in STT GDC in June 2024, underscoring their long-standing interest in the digital infrastructure sector. Singtel confirmed it is part of a consortium in discussions relating to STT GDC but also cautioned that there is “no certainty” discussions will lead to a binding agreement, while advising investors to exercise caution.
Industry observers say such a deal would strengthen Singapore’s footprint in critical middle-to-large scale data infrastructure and reflect strategic positioning by both private equity and telecom players in a highly competitive digital economy. Analysts also note the rising appetite for data centre capacity from cloud providers, AI developers and hyperscale computing customers as key drivers behind the valuation and timing of the potential acquisition.
(Source: ET Telecom)
