The head of the Japan unit of major Canadian asset management firm Brookfield has voiced plans to promote investments in artificial intelligence data centers that can process large amounts of data.
During a recent interview, Luke Edwards said, “Building out data centers requires detailed knowledge of the sector and the power system, and we have knowledge of both.”
He also expressed confidence in building power systems for data centers.
Brookfield plans to invest over $10 billion, or some ¥1.6 trillion, in Japan over the next five years. As the first step, it acquired the headquarters building of major Japanese advertising agency Dentsu in Tokyo’s Shiodome area for some ¥300 billion.
While it is unclear how much of the planned investments will be allocated to data centers and other related facilities, Edwards said, “As one of the world’s largest owners and operators of power-related infrastructure, we are unique in the market with the knowledge we possess.
“Going forward, in addition to expanding infrastructure, we would like to work with major Japanese utilities and companies to invest in the replacement and upgrading of aging infrastructure,” he said.
Meanwhile, he stopped short of commenting on whether Brookfield had applied for a partnership with Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (Tepco).
In 2018, Brookfield acquired major U.S. nuclear energy firm Westinghouse Electric from Japanese machinery maker Toshiba.
Brookfield has around $1.3 trillion in assets under management.