Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. is investing up to US$9 billion in an expansion of a South Korean data centre in partnership with leading chip-maker Nvidia Corp. Nvidia will invest $1 billion into Korean tech and internet company Naver Corp., and Naver will fund the remainder of the AI infrastructure expansion at its GAK Sejong hyperscale data centre to 200 megawatts by 2028, from the initially planned 55 megawatts. The AI factory will be built using Nvidia technology and will “provide Korea- and U.S.-based AI innovators with access to production-scale AI compute for building next-generation models, agents and AI-powered services,” according to a press release last week. Brookfield said it has US$100 billion of assets under management across the AI infrastructure value chain.
Also in July, Brookfield acquired battery storage developer Aypa Power from Blackstone Energy Transition Partners in a deal valuing the company at US$7 billion, or US$3 billion in equity value. Brookfield is making the investment alongside institutional partners including Brookfield Renewable Partners. Aypa has portfolio battery storage projects across the United States and Canada, both in operation and under construction.
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Canada Pension Plan Investment Board is acquiring a majority stake in Tarchon, a subsea energy infrastructure project in Europe, for $1 billion. Elia Group will buy a 25% look-through stake in the project through its WindGrid subsidiary. The Tarchon interconnector project will provide a high-voltage direct current transmission link between the United Kingdom and Germany. The transaction is expected to close before the end of the year.
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Navacord Corp. has partnered with Steers Insurance Ltd., a leading property and casualty brokerage in Atlantic Canada. Terms of the deal — Navacord’s seventh transaction so far this year – were not disclosed. The partnership with Steers, based in Newfoundland and Labrador, establishes the firm’s presence in a new province.