Data Center Infrastructure Investment Accelerates as Global Compute Demand Expands

Large-scale data centers benefit from structural demand, long-duration contracts, and accelerating AI workloads

NEW YORK, Jan. 20, 2026 /CNW/ -- Market News Update News Commentary - The global data center market is poised for robust growth, driven by the ongoing digital transformation of enterprises, cloud adoption, and the expanding footprint of artificial intelligence and edge computing. Analysts project the sector to exceed $300 billion by 2026, with annual capacity growth supported by both hyperscale facilities and decentralized edge nodes that bring compute closer to end users and low-latency applications. Enterprise workloads, hybrid and multi-cloud deployments, and the proliferation of IoT devices further accelerate demand for new and diversified data center capacity. Investment activity has mirrored this momentum, with record dealmaking and large strategic projects underway -- from multi-billion-dollar hyperscale campuses to partnerships securing long-term energy supply for next-generation computing, creating opportunities for active companies in the markets such as VivoPower International PLC (NASDAQ: VVPR), IREN Limited (NASDAQ: IREN), TeraWulf Inc. (NASDAQ: WULF), MARA Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: MARA) and NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA).

Large-scale data center operations today are anchored in reliability, efficiency, and scalability. Operators deploy advanced infrastructure management systems that integrate real-time monitoring, automation, and predictive analytics to maintain uptime and optimize power, cooling, and network resources across multi-site campuses. Investment in sophisticated power delivery and redundancy configurations -- including modular substations, UPS systems, and N+2 or higher architectures -- ensures mission-critical continuity for hyperscale cloud providers, enterprise tenants, and AI computing workloads. At the same time, energy management and sustainability initiatives -- from renewable power procurement to liquid cooling and PUE optimization -- are increasingly central to reducing operational costs, enhancing resiliency, and meeting corporate ESG commitments in a market where electricity demand can rival that of small cities.

For investors, the data center sector offers a compelling combination of growth, structural demand, and long-duration revenue potential, though with nuanced risk-reward dynamics tied to capital intensity and infrastructure funding models. As demand for AI-ready facilities ramps, infrastructure owners and operators are positioned to benefit from strong lease rates and expanding service portfolios, including colocation, interconnection, and managed solutions. At the same time, market sentiment underscores the importance of evaluating balance sheet strength, energy availability, and sustainability credentials as differentiators in a capital-intensive landscape. Strategic investors are also eyeing adjacent infrastructure plays -- from power generation and substations to cooling innovations -- that stand to gain from the ecosystem expansion required to support the next era of digital infrastructure.

VivoPower International PLC (NASDAQ: VVPR) Secures Strategic Site and Power Access for 25MW Data Centre Platform in the United Arab Emirates with Expansion Capacity - VivoPower International PLC ("VivoPower" or the "Company"), a leading B Corp-certified global sustainable energy solutions group, announced today the execution of an agreement to acquire, develop, build, operate, and own an initial 25MW data center facility in the United Arab Emirates, secured pursuant to a long-term Agreement with strategic partners. The agreement provides access to dedicated power infrastructure and includes development rights for further scaling, positioning the project as a highly competitive digital infrastructure platform aligned with the UAE's long term digital economy objective.

The facility has been designed with modularity to support multiple high-value, power-intensive digital infrastructure use cases, enabling VivoPower to efficiently deploy capital across secure compute, data processing, and other evolving digital infrastructure applications.  The closing of the investment is expected to be at the latest in February 2026, subject to customary closing conditions.

Kevin Chin, Executive Chairman and CEO of VivoPower, said: "As we have noted previously, the UAE is a highly strategic market for VivoPower, supported by its leadership in digital infrastructure, energy transition, and long-term economic diversification. We are pleased to have secured this opportunity to develop, build, operatea strategic data center infrastructure asset in the UAE pursuant to a long-term Agreement, working alongside our strategic partners. We will work diligently to deliver the initial 25MW facility and support the continued evolution of the UAE's digital infrastructure ecosystem."  CONTINUED… Read this full press release and more news for VivoPower International at: https://vivopower.com/press-releases/

Other recent developments in markets of note include:

IREN Limited (NASDAQ: IREN) late last year announced it had signed a multi-year GPU cloud services contract with Microsoft. Under the agreement, IREN will provide Microsoft with access to NVIDIA GB300 GPUs over a five-year term, with a total contract value of approximately $9.7 billion, including a 20% prepayment. IREN has also entered into an agreement with Dell Technologies to purchase the GPUs and ancillary equipment for approximately $5.8 billion.

The GPUs are expected to be deployed in phases through 2026 at IREN's 750MW Childress, Texas campus, in conjunction with the delivery of new liquid-cooled data centers that will collectively support 200MW of critical IT load.

TeraWulf Inc. (NASDAQ: WULF) greatest asset is its unparalleled access to low-cost, predominantly zero-carbon energy. This advantage enables the development of large-scale digital infrastructure that is sustainable, reliable, and efficient.

TeraWulf is led by an accomplished, diverse management team with over 30 years of experience in developing and managing energy and digital infrastructure.

MPLX LP and MARA Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: MARA) announced late last year the signing of a letter of intent (LOI) for MPLX to facilitate supply of natural gas to planned integrated power generation facilities and state-of-the-art data center campuses in West Texas.

Under the initiative, MPLX will facilitate natural gas supply from its Delaware basin natural gas processing plants to MARA's planned gas-fired electricity generation facilities in West Texas, which will deliver reliable, scalable solutions for the region's energy and computing needs. MARA will build multiple power generation facilities and data centers at locations near MPLX processing facilities across the Delaware basin, with an initial capacity of 400 MW and the potential to scale up to 1.5 GW. These power generation facilities will be supplied natural gas by MPLX and provide electricity for MARA's planned data center campuses while also supplying power to MPLX's West Texas operations, enhancing reliability for MPLX and its producer-customers.

NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) recently announced that New Multi-Agent Intelligent Warehouse (MAIW) and Retail Catalog Enrichment NVIDIA Blueprints are designed to turn this dynamic system into an advantage. These open-source developer references, launched recently, empower developers to customize AI-powered solutions for the retail value chain, from warehouse to wardrobes.

"Building with these blueprints will reduce the cost of integration and help our customers and partners enable applications fast," said Tarik Hammadou, director of developer relations for AI for retail and consumer packaged goods at NVIDIA. "They unlock the efficiency and enterprise‑grade scale the retail industry needs to compete."

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