Japanese power generator Jera and two partners will spend $15bn to build a large artificial intelligence data centre at a thermal power station in Chiba, near Tokyo, Jiji Press reported on October 2. Jera announced the project on October 1 with US technology company Dell Technologies (NYSE: DELL) and British data centre developer Rhaelm Holdings. Jera is jointly owned by a unit of Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (TYO: 9501) and Chubu Electric Power (TYO: 9502).

The facility will draw electricity directly from the power plant that hosts it. This removes the need for large-scale transmission facilities and allows the data centre to start operating sooner than a site connected through the grid. The plant will supply a power capacity of up to 400,000 kilowatts, which would make the facility one of the largest data centres in Japan. The data centre is expected to begin operating around 2028.

The Chiba project is the first phase of a partnership agreement Jera signed with Dell Technologies and Rhaelm Holdings on October 1. According to Jiji Press, the agreement aims to speed up the development of AI infrastructure. Jera also operates the Chiba thermal power station.