Minister for Home Affairs and Cyber Security Clare O’Neil graced the ceremony.

Addressing the audience of senior technology executives and data centre experts at the company’s Ground Breaking Ceremony, the Minister emphasised the role of secure, sovereign data centres in the nation’s digital future.

“Our country has really woken up to and started to fully understand not just the opportunities of a digital future, but also the need to be thinking about cyber and data security at the same time. We have some really significant cyber issues and geopolitical tensions to manage as a country, and there’s every reason to believe the challenges we see are going to grow and exacerbate in the years ahead,” says the Minister.

The Government’s 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy aims to protect the nation’s critical infrastructure and strengthening its sovereign capabilities.

The campus will include a sovereign Cyber Security Centre of Excellence which integrates the latest in physical and virtual infrastructure security, supported by Australian Government-cleared engineers.

NSW Government invested in the centre to expand the workforce of cybersecurity experts in the future, boosting the nation’s sovereign capability in the cyber domain.

“This is a big opportunity for Australia, and one we are uniquely placed to benefit from. We have extraordinary companies which are doing world-leading things, and Macquarie is among them. One of the great things about Macquarie is that it’s based in Australia and owned by Australians. This is sovereign capability and will create jobs in technology and construction,” says the Minister.

IC3 Super West will be the third and largest addition to Macquarie Data Centres’ flagship Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus. The facility will bring the total campus IT load up to 63 megawatts (MW), with all the end state power already secured.

“So profound is the impact of AI and cloud, that it’s being hailed as the fourth industrial revolution, powered by a different kind of factory, AI factories. Scalable and flexible data centres purpose-built for high-density compute,” says Macquarie Data Centres group executive David Hirst.

“IC3 Super West is our answer to the nation’s need for sovereign AI and cloud data centre capacity. As we continue to expand, we will be acquiring new campuses here in Sydney’s north zone. We’re committed to supporting the growth of Australia’s digital economy and retain our intellectual property within Australia.”

Construction on the facility started in June after Macquarie Data Centres appointed leading Australian construction provider, FDC Construction, as the main build contractor.

According to Macquarie Data Centres, the construction will cost $350 million from FY25 to practical completion of Phase 1, which will deliver the powered core and shell, as well as 6MW of IT load fitted out.

It is expected to bring 1,200 jobs to the region.