Virtus secures GBP £2.45 billion data centre financing

VIRTUS Data Centres has secured a GBP £2.45 billion financing package, in what it described as one of the largest UK bank financings for a data centre operator.

The funding will support the development and expansion of VIRTUS sites in the UK and Europe, including work on its Saunderton campus in Buckinghamshire, further investment in LONDON19 in Slough and broader growth on the continent.

The package includes GBP £1.2 billion in green capital expenditure facilities, structured through term and revolving tranches. This is intended to provide long-term funding while giving the operator flexibility in how it draws capital for expansion projects.

VIRTUS, part of the STTGDC Group, is one of the UK's largest data centre operators. It develops and runs facilities used by cloud, artificial intelligence and enterprise computing customers. The new package is expected to strengthen its balance sheet as it enters its next growth phase.

A consortium of 13 banks provided the debt package. BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole CIB, Societe Generale and Standard Chartered Bank acted as coordinators, senior mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners.

The scale of the transaction highlights strong lender interest in data centre infrastructure, which has drawn growing attention from banks and investors as demand rises for digital capacity linked to cloud services and artificial intelligence. In the UK, operators have been expanding around London and in regional markets to secure land and electricity for new campuses.

One project named in the financing plan is VIRTUS' 78 MW Saunderton campus in Buckinghamshire. VIRTUS described the site as AI-ready, reflecting an industry shift towards facilities designed to support denser computing loads and more intensive cooling requirements.

Funding structure

The inclusion of a green capex facility is notable given scrutiny of data centre energy use and environmental standards. In the sector, lenders and borrowers have increasingly tied large financing packages to sustainability frameworks or green funding criteria as operators expand while addressing power efficiency and emissions concerns.

For VIRTUS, the package provides a framework for development funding rather than a single-asset construction loan. That approach is often used by established operators with a portfolio of live sites and a pipeline of planned projects, allowing them to allocate debt across several schemes over time.

Macquarie Asset Management holds a significant minority stake in VIRTUS through Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 7. The ownership structure reflects a broader trend of infrastructure and private capital investors backing digital assets with long-term demand visibility and substantial capital requirements.

Advisers on the deal included Simmons & Simmons for VIRTUS and Clifford Chance for the lending group. No further financial terms were disclosed beyond the committed amount and the headline structure of the package.

Chief Executive Officer Adam Eaton said the financing marked a significant point for the business as it expands its estate.

"This financing marks an important milestone for VIRTUS. It reflects the strength and stability of our existing portfolio, our track record of delivery and the opportunities ahead. The capital flexibility it provides will enable us to continue investing in high-quality data centre infrastructure and support our ongoing growth across the European market," Eaton said.