AGWA and AWP launch project on data centers in Indo-Pacific
Hyperscalers are doing just that. Scaling. And out-scaling energy and water planning processes, exacerbating challenges for local utilities and communities. Data center capacity in the Indo-Pacific region is predicted to double within the next three years. A new project between the Australian Water Partnership (AWP) and the Alliance for Global Water Adaptation (AGWA) seeks to equip those cities and regions with the policy frameworks, knowledge, and tools they need to not just survive an AI boom but thrive in it.
Data centers need direct access to water and electricity, meaning that they are often located near population centers, creating potential conflicts with municipal and industrial demands.
Data centers provide steady cash flows for landowners with long-term contracts, making them the second most attractive asset class in 2025 in the Indo-Pacific region. Globally, capital expenditures by hyperscalers on large-scale data centers jumped 58% in 2025.
As demand for data centers increases, new and effective practices, policies, and tools to manage their impact on water and energy systems are needed to ensure they result in sustainable, equitable, and resilient outcomes in regions where they are built.
This project was developed through direct discussions with water, energy, and data center operators, stakeholders, and regulators worldwide. Beyond increasing competition for resources, the region also faces the escalating and unpredictable impacts of climate change.
Water resilience as a framework can offer effective, flexible, and robust long-term solutions that welcome data centers as a new stakeholder to the community of other energy and water demands in ways that can adjust and evolve with shifting climate conditions.
The project will engage four key stakeholder groups that hold important insights and knowledge. These groups include: 1) national authorities, 2) investors and financing agencies, 3) utilities and local governments, and 4) data center developers and industrial actors.
Over the coming months, AWP and AGWA will facilitate knowledge exchange and dialogue between authorities in the region. This will run alongside a communications campaign focused on improving understanding of both the technical and governance aspects of the topic, helping inform decision-making on the intersection of water, energy, and data system resilience.
This project will mobilize the extensive networks and decades of experience that AWP and AGWA offer. By bringing Indo-Pacific experiences to the global stage, we can link local resilience planning to broader climate, energy, and water security goals at the regional and global level.
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