INTHEBLACK October 2026 - Magazine - Page 24
F E AT U R E
The China Telecom
(National) Digital Qinghai
Green Big Data Center,
China's first zero-carbon
data centre, has achieved
carbon neutrality and
zero carbon emissions.
Haidong city, Qinghai
Province of China,
March 2024.
to be far more deliberate about where,
how and why this infrastructure is built.”
READ
an article on what
the national AI
plan means for
businesses in
Australia
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24 INTHEBLACK October 2026
REGULATORY OVERSIGHT
As governments respond to the rapid growth
of data centres, the ACF wants the Albanese
government in Australia to adopt in full
the joint public interest principles for data
centres into binding regulations that “provide
clarity and confidence to the community”.
“In particular, AI data giants should be
required to contract for 100 per cent additional
renewable energy to power their facilities,
providing demand pull for the buildout
of the additional energy that will be needed
to power these facilities,” Reynolds says.
Trust will be crucial, Maqbool notes,
as data centres deliver in areas such as
AI, cybersecurity, digital sovereignty and
advanced connectivity. “If countries get it
right, they will be better positioned in the
next phase of the digital economy,” she says.
“It is as simple as that. Trusted, secure
and sustainable digital infrastructure
is what it is about.”
Maqbool has no doubt the accounting
and finance profession has an important
role to play given that capital allocation,
risk management, assurance, ESG reporting,
governance and “thinking about long-term
value creation sit at the heart of this”.
“Investors want to know that the ‘digital
growth’ is not simply shifting costs on to
the energy system, the environment or local
communities,” she says. “Sustainability cannot
be an afterthought — it needs to be built into
the commercial model, the governance model
and the operating model.”
Scroggie is confident that the business case
and capital investment will add up for data
centres in Australia. He notes that the nation
has “mobilised on this scale before”, citing
the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme
and the National Broadband Network.
“This cycle is larger than both in capital
intensity. The capital is here. The customers
are committing. The infrastructure is funded
by operators, not households. The opportunity
is extraordinary. Execution is what matters now.”
Ultimately, according to Whitelock,
Australia can either become a regional
digital infrastructure hub — capturing
investment, jobs, exports and sovereign
capability — or watch capital flow to other
global jurisdictions with clearer settings.
“The window is open, but it will not stay
open indefinitely.” ■
