Western Sydney is where New South Wales's new data centers are going. The biggest fight is over AirTrunk's proposed 1.2-gigawatt campus on 52 hectares at Mamre Road, Kemps Creek, which would be Australia's first above 1 gigawatt of power. Planning documents list six four-story buildings, 846 diesel backup generators and more than 18,000 kiloliters of diesel storage. AirTrunk, majority-owned by Blackstone, has said it will not comment on potential developments.
Penrith City Council told the state the site was "not suitable for a proposed development of this scale." Ross Whelan, principal of Mamre Anglican School across the road, raised air quality and noise, and the Catholic Diocese of Parramatta objected over risks to its nearby retirement village.
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Elsewhere in Western Sydney, CDC Data Centres won state approval on November 28, 2025 for a A$3.1 billion, 504-megawatt campus at Marsden Park despite Blacktown City Council's objections, and NEXTDC plans its S7 AI campus at Eastern Creek, put at 612 megawatts in March 2026 planning documents, with OpenAI as its first major customer.
On August 17, 2026, the government promised to assess data centers within 75 days if they meet new standards, including no net cost to consumers and paying for new renewable power and water supply. Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said data center builders "need to bring power, not take it." A day earlier, residents and students protested across Western Sydney calling for a moratorium. In the Blue Mountains, a developer withdrew a small data center plan in North Katoomba in June 2026 after petitions and council opposition.
Projects not tied to an area
Sites whose records name no county. Everything else is on the pages listed above.
New South Wales12
| Project | Company | Status | Power | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NEXTDC S7 / OpenAI Western SydneyEastern Creek NSW | NEXTDC | Proposed | 612 MW | |
| NEXTDC S4 Sydney (Horsley Park)NSW | NEXTDC | Approved | 365 MW | |
| AirTrunk SYD1 (Sydney West)NSW | AirTrunk (Blackstone) | 130 MW | ||
| AirTrunk SYD2 (Sydney North)NSW | AirTrunk (Blackstone) | 120 MW | ||
| NEXTDC S5 SydneyNSW | NEXTDC | Proposed | 80 MW | |
| Digital Realty Sydney North Ryde (SYD12)NSW | Digital Realty | Proposed | 70 MW | |
| NEXTDC S2 SydneyNSW | NEXTDC | 30 MW | ||
| MAK Urban Group · North Katoomba, Blue MountainsBlue MountainsExact site not confirmed | MAK Urban Group | Withdrawn | 2 MW | Source off site ↗ |
| Digital Realty Sydney Erskine Park (SYD10/11)NSW | Digital Realty | Not reported | ||
| Keppel Macquarie Park Data Centre (Sydney)NSW | Keppel (Keppel DC REIT) | Not reported | ||
| Microsoft Kemps CreekNSW | Microsoft | Not reported | ||
| NEXTDC S3 SydneyNSW | NEXTDC | Not reported |
Where this comes from
The reporting above was written from these. Open one and check it yourself.
Where people here have won
Projects stopped by a vote, pulled by their developer, or blocked in court.
| Place | What happened | Date | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Katoomba, Blue MountainsMAK Urban Group | Withdrawn by the developer Developer withdrew its application after resident petitions and council opposition (next to homes, a school and a creek). | Jun 25, 2026 | 3,118 sqm, 1-2 MW | Story off site ↗ |
Every project above is drawn from public records, filings and local reporting. Each row links to what it is based on. Statuses change, so check the source date before you rely on one. Found something wrong? Write to [email protected] and it gets fixed.