Data CentresKirsten CrazeMon 19 Oct 26
Tasmania Hands Firmus Deadline for Wesley Vale ‘AI Factory’ Proposal
Firmus Technologies has until the middle of December to file a complete major project proposal for its planned $2.1-billion 52MW data centre in north-west Tasmania or risk having the application withdrawn.
Under the state’s major projects planning process, the developer has 90 days to provide documentation needed to determine whether the Wesley Vale project qualifies for assessment through the pathway.
The deadline follows Firmus’s decision to withdraw its planned $30-million ASX listing on October 9, citing “market volatility and prevailing market conditions”.
It would have been Australia’s largest IPO since Telstra in 1997.
The proposed float had targeted a valuation of about $44 billion, however Firmus reportedly faced weak investor demand with prospective investors and analysts raising concerns about the company’s proposed valuation, debt levels and the detail provided in its IPO materials.
Latrobe Council has referred the proposal to the state Planning Minister without a completed major project proposal.
If completed, the centre would occupy about 3ha at 174 and 226 Mill Road, on the former APPM/PaperlinX pulp and paper mill site at Wesley Vale, which operated on the site between from 1969 until 2010.
The site adjoins existing electricity transmission infrastructure, including the Wesley Vale substation.
Firmus’s DA proposes a 3502sq m building including a 2689sq m data hall and 793sq m of administration space, alongside technical infrastructure, cooling systems, water storage and internal roads.
The proposal includes 40 diesel backup generators for grid outages, testing and maintenance.
Firmus said in its submission that upgrades would support the second 26MW connection.
According to Firmus, the cooling system would use an average 448 kilolitres of water annually, sourced from on-site rainwater with dry cooling used on most days.
The proposal also cites independent noise modelling that predicts levels beyond the site boundary of up to 31 decibels for 1 per cent of the year.
Firmus estimates the centre would employ about 70 local civil, electrical and contractors during construction, with more than 20 full-time jobs in its initial stage of operation.
Joining a wave of community opposition to data centres across the country, the Wesley Vale project has faced local backlash from several groups around water security and noise concerns.
Latrobe Council has also investigated whether site works went beyond an approved forest practices plan with Firmus claiming work was general site maintenance that did not require planning approval.
The company’s wider Tasmanian pipeline includes a 104MW AI facility at St Leonards, Launceston and an approved 288MW development at Bell Bay.
Hydro Tasmania is assessing a request made by Firmus for a long-term energy arrangement to support its combined 444MW demand, with an outcome expected by the end of the year.
If Firmus misses its December 15 deadline, the Wesley Vale proposal will be treated as withdrawn and legislation prevents the same or a substantially similar application from being resubmitted to council for two years.
If the minister were to decide the project should not be declared a major project, the scheme would return to the original council assessment process.
