SoftBank, Petros and Grab Launch $1 Billion Malaysian Data Center Venture Targeting 5GW

Japan's SoftBank Group has partnered with Malaysian state-owned oil and gas company Petroleum Sarawak Berhad (Petros) and Singapore-based rideshare and technology firm Grab to develop data centers in Malaysia's Sarawak region, marking a significant bet on the country's ambition to become a major Asia-Pacific computing hub. The venture underscores growing investor confidence in Malaysia's data center market, which has attracted a wave of hyperscale commitments in recent months as global technology companies seek to expand AI and cloud infrastructure across Southeast Asia.

The three companies signed a Joint Development Agreement for the Malaysian data center buildout, with an initial investment of US$1 billion (RM4.07 billion). Under the arrangement, SoftBank will contribute US$800 million, while Grab and Petros will each invest US$100 million. The partners have set a long-term target of five gigawatts of compute capacity in Sarawak, one of the Borneo states of Malaysia, and will seek additional investors and hyperscaler customers to support the buildout. The agreement follows a framework deal announced last month.

As part of the broader industrial expansion push, state-owned Petros plans to expand critical gas infrastructure in the region, supporting the energy requirements of the planned facilities. The companies said the data centers will be developed in close collaboration with Malaysia's federal government and the Sarawak state government.

Masayoshi Son, chairman and CEO of SoftBank, said: "We are proud to work with Sarawak to advance AI for the benefit of the region and its people. Together with Grab and Petros, we aim to create lasting opportunities in Sarawak and support the development of technology-driven economic activity across Malaysia and the wider region."

The venture adds to Malaysia's growing profile as an Asia-Pacific data center destination. Google recently announced plans to invest US$15 billion in the country, joining proposed investments from OpenAI, Tencent, and PDG, as the nation positions itself to capture demand for AI-ready computing capacity. The SoftBank-led project's five-gigawatt target signals the scale of ambition behind Sarawak's effort to establish itself as a compute cluster, though the partners will need to secure additional capital and anchor tenants to realize the full buildout.