South Morang Data Centre Project
ABOUT THE PROJECT
The South Morang Data Centre Project is a key digital infrastructure development within Melbourne's crucial northern growth corridor.
Led by Dover DC, as development partner, the project is supported by investors with a long history of active property and infrastructure development, including successful local projects.
The project will form an important part of the next-generation of vital Victoria digital infrastructure that will deliver critical economic and everyday technology benefits - including better enabling essential services for banking, communications and health - to the City of Whittlesea and Melbourne's north-east.
The responsible project group is committed to developing the project sustainably and mitigating its impact on the local community. A commitment reflected in the significant work undertaken, in consultation with government departments and agencies, in addressing key focus areas for community stakeholders, including in respect of power, water use and local amenity.
Effective stakeholder engagement is central to our development approach, and we will ensure the local community is kept informed.
PROJECT DETAILS
The project comprises data centre developments at 765 Plenty Road / 525–535 McDonalds Road (SM1A), and 165 Williamsons Road (SM1B), South Morang.
SM1A
Three-storey data hall building situated on ~1 hectare of a ~3.5 hectare site less than 1km from the South Morang Terminal Station.
Planning approval – PA2402997 – was granted for the Project by the Minister for Planning in September 2024 under the state's Development Facilitation Program (with further amendments approved in June 2025 and October 2025).
SM1A has been designed to provide up to 120MW of high efficiency infrastructure.
SM1B
Three-storey data hall building situated on ~1.8 hectares of a ~8.7 hectare site directly adjacent to the South Morang Terminal Station
SM1B has been designed to provide up to 200MW of high-efficiency infrastructure.
INDICATIVE PROJECT TIMELINE*
LATE 2026 / EARLY 2027
Construction commencement
LATE 2028 / EARLY 2029
Commissioning and commencement of initial operations
2031+ and beyond
Ultimate capacity “end state” expected following ramp up of operations
*subject to receipt of all requisite approvals
PROJECT BENEFITS
Independent economic analysis estimates* the project will create:
Construction
>1,750 new full-time-equivalent jobs during construction, comprising >750 direct and >1,000 indirect jobs.
Operations
>600 new ongoing jobs in operations, comprising >200 direct and >400 indirect jobs.
*based on independent economic analysis from Macroplan interpolated for the entire project based on relative scale.
The project will also deliver several non-quantifiable economic and community benefits, including:
STEM pathways
Provide crucial pathways for local students into high-value careers in technology, engineering and facilities roles.
Increased amenity
Provide frontage improvements along McDonalds Road with the City of Whittlesea, including a shared use path, widened nature strips, retained tree canopy.
Industry clustering
Anchor a technology precinct in Whittlesea's north, attracting co-located tech businesses and reducing latency for local operators.
Improved drainage
Upgrade of Heath’s Court Drain to improve local drainage outcomes.
ADDRESSING COMMUNITY IMPACTS
Important work undertaken to mitigate impacts from the Project on local communities includes:
Power
The current design is consistent with best-practice power usage efficiency targets to ensure responsible use of power. Connection to the South Morang Terminal Station requires no significant network augmentation, avoiding expensive infrastructure costs that could ultimately be passed on to consumers.
Water
The project's water strategy has been developed in consultation with Yarra Valley Water (YVW) and is aligned to the YVW demand management objectives, including considerations around peak hour load shedding on peak network demand days. The current design target is less than a litre of water per kilowatt-hour, based on best-practice cooling system design. Our current design is flexible to enable the future integration of recycled water when supply and connection are made available in line with the Victoria Government's policy position for large non-residential users.
Noise
The project has been designed to meet all mandated noise and amenity limits. A noise impact assessment completed in relation to the (limited) nearby residential areas confirmed that noise is within the allowable limits under worst-case operating scenarios. We are also currently undertaking further baseline monitoring work in advance of regulatory requirements. Compliance with noise limits is an ongoing obligation through construction and operations.
Flooding and drainage
The project complies with Melbourne Water's requirements and flood modelling scenarios. As part of the project, the Heath's Court Drain is being significantly upgraded – including through the construction of a new in-ground retention area - to provide improved drainage outcomes.
Vegetation and environment
Protected trees along the McDonalds Road frontage are being retained. Our commitment to offsetting environmental impacts demonstrated through securing a significant offset site of up to 18 hectares. This site was selected following the evaluation of over 3,500 possible sites to ensure appropriate ecological outcomes are achieved, and approvals are progressing with the Victorian and Commonwealth government environment departments.
Community amenity
Additional land has been set aside to deliver frontage improvements along McDonalds Road with the City of Whittlesea, including a shared use path, widened nature strips and retained tree canopy. Over 9,000 square metres of private land has been gifted back to the public as part of the project to facilitate this activation with the public realm and upgrade the Heath's Court Drain. Project construction will be carried out in accordance with planning permit requirements and the management plans endorsed under them.
PROJECT RESPONSIBILITY AND EXPERIENCE
Led by the Dover DC team, the project is supported by investors with a track record of successful infrastructure and property development. This includes a long project development history in and around the local area, featuring significant community infrastructure and strong grassroots relationships.
Important local projects include:
Oleander Drive and Bush Boulevard
Provided important connectivity between Plenty Road and McDonalds Road in South Morang.
Quarry Hills Parkland
Gifted ~100 hectares of land to the community, joining Quarry Hills north and south and creating a contiguous community space.
Mason Point
Originally acquired in 2010, Mason Point has given rise to a number of dedicated commercial developments in addition to six mixed-use stages, with: >200 apartments and 96 townhouses constructed or in-construction, in addition to 11,000sqm of commercial tenancies; and Mason Point having been recognised as an exemplary and innovative development by the industry in 2018, when it was nominated at the inaugural UDIA Awards for Excellence.
Bush Boulevard Development
A major mixed-use development within the Mason Point precinct, delivered 300 residential dwellings and over 5,000 sqm of commercial space, and with the development of 18 Bush Boulevard to complete the live/work/play precinct within the Plenty Valley Activity Centre.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT COMMITMENT AND STAYING INFORMED
Effective stakeholder engagement is central to our development approach, and we will ensure the local community is kept informed. This website will be updated as the project progresses.
