BentallGreenOak has committed €140 million (NOK 1.5 billion) to support the future growth of Bulk Infrastructure’s core lines of business.
The real estate investment manager joins main shareholders, Bulk Industrier and Geveran, in securing capital for the company’s future growth, with a series of capital injections from BGO and existing shareholders that will take place from January 2021.
“We want to unlock the potential the Nordics and renewable energy has to offer in sustainable digital infrastructure,” said Peder Nærbø, founder of Bulk Infrastructure.
“With a top tier international investor like BentallGreenOak in our company, we will enable faster growth and better scale for our opportunities.
“This provides us with a great platform for reaching our vision of bringing sustainable infrastructure to a global audience, and to serve the biggest and most demanding customers out there.”
John Carrafiell, Senior Managing Partner and Co-founder of BentallGreenOak, will join Bulk Infrastructure’s Board of Directors, and founder, Peder Nærbø, and his company Bulk Industrier, will remain the lead investor and Chairman of the Board.
“This partnership with Bulk Infrastructure is a perfect match for BGO,” said Carrafiell. “BGO has been focused on the European logistics market since 2013, and, similar to Bulk's own evolution, considers data centres to be a natural extension of the firm’s real estate investment strategy.
“Bulk Infrastructure's commitment to building on the Nordic region's natural advantages to deliver strong economic and environmental performance in real estate and infrastructure is well-aligned with BGO's own investment priorities.
“We are pleased to be developing exciting new pathways, on behalf of our investors, that deliver performance-driven investment opportunities that also benefit the local economy and maintain a focus on environmental sustainability.”
Bulk Infrastructure, in partnership with BentallGreenOak, expects to invest in the continuing development of its N01 data centre campus in south Norway. The data centre spans 3 million sqm and has up to 1 gigawatt of IT power.
“This partnership provides us with a solid financial platform as Bulk Infrastructure is opportunity-rich in all three business areas,” said Bulk Infrastructure CEO, Jon Gravråk.
“As an example, we see an opportunity for major capacity additions in our three existing data centre campuses as well as in other Nordic destinations.
“Bulk Infrastructure’s combination of reliable and cost-effective access to 100% green power from renewable sources, cold climate, stable business environment, and well-positioned fibre optic network, is uniquely situated to attract a significant share of the rapidly growing European and global data centre market.”
