Jurisdiction Index / Australia
Australia
JCI composite · as of · methodology v0
Australia scores 61.9/100 on the Compute Institute Jurisdiction Competitiveness Index (Tier 2, Competitive), ranking #12 of 30 rated jurisdictions with a negative outlook, as of June 15, 2026 under methodology v0. Its strongest dimension is Stability & Execution Risk at 8.6/10; its weakest is Fiscal & Incentives at 4.7/10. 20 of 22 sub-factors are scored on E1–E2 evidence (data confidence A). The negative outlook is driven by 2 forward-looking signals (-0.60 net points, E3–E4 evidence): observed construction velocity (E3) and enacted incentives (E3).
Dimension breakdown
Seven dimensions, each 0–10, weighted per methodology v0. JCI = Σ(dimension × weight) × 10.
Power Availability & Deliverability
Power Cost
Speed to Build
Regulatory & AI Policy Environment
Fiscal & Incentives
Capital & Ecosystem Depth
Stability & Execution Risk
Outlook drivers — Negative (-0.60 net points)
Forward-looking E3–E4 signals. They move the outlook only — never the base score.
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Observed construction velocity +0.00 pts as of
“Thin internal-DB signal: ~162 operational DCs nationally (~1.5 GW operational fleet per Dept of Industry) with multiple hyperscale SSDs approved late-2025 (Marsden Park, DigiCo SYD1, NEXTDC S4) indicate active build velocity, but project-level energisation cadence is not yet captured in the internal database — graded mid-scale and honestly as provisional.”
Source: Certified Strategic Australia Data Centre Index (citing AEMO/Dept of Industry, Jun 2026) (certifiedstrategic.com)
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Enacted incentives -0.60 pts as of
“Australia offers no broad DC-specific tax abatement regime comparable to US state programs; incentives are largely indirect (R&D Tax Incentive, state investment-attraction deals and the Capacity Investment Scheme supporting renewable supply rather than DCs directly), so enacted DC-targeted fiscal support is thin — graded honestly low.”
Source: Ashurst, Australia's Evolving Data Centre Landscape: Policy meets Pipeline (2025) (www.ashurst.com)
Sub-factor scores and sources
Every base-scored input below carries E1–E2 evidence: a justification, an evidence-level grade, and a link to the underlying source document.
Power Availability & Deliverability — 5.9/10 (weight 20%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grid headroom 40% of dimension | 5 /10 | AEMO received ~44 GW of data-centre connection requests in the 2025 IASR but estimates ~6 in every 7 MW is 'phantom demand', with only ~6 GW genuinely required under the Step Change scenario; as of the Mar-2026 quarter only 11 large-load projects totalling 5.4 GW (≈60% NSW, ≈40%... as of | AEMO Quarterly Energy Dynamics Q1 2026 / 2024 Integrated System Plan (Jun 2026 / 2024) www.aemo.com.au | |
| Time-to-power 35% of dimension | 6.5 /10 | AEMO's connections onboarding lead describes an approximate two-year timeframe from application to energisation for large-load transmission connections (varying with project readiness and system conditions), placing AU well inside the 3–4yr (=5) anchor and approaching the <18mo t... as of | AEMO Quarterly Energy Dynamics Q1 2026 disclosure (2 Jun 2026) www.aemo.com.au | |
| Energy mix & expandability 15% of dimension | 6.5 /10 | Renewables supplied ~40% of NEM electricity in 2024, with the 2024 ISP charting a path to 82% by 2030 via renewables firmed by storage and backed by gas as ~90% of the coal fleet retires before 2035; expandability is strong on the supply pipeline but gated by transmission deliver... as of | AEMO 2024 Integrated System Plan (Jun 2024) www.aemo.com.au | |
| Water availability 10% of dimension | 6 /10 | Australia is a dry continent rated medium-high baseline water stress overall by WRI Aqueduct 4.0, but the anchor DC metros differ: Sydney/NSW sits at lower stress while Melbourne and inland NSW siting regions face higher seasonal stress, and Sydney Water has flagged infrastructur... as of | WRI Aqueduct 4.0 Country Rankings www.wri.org |
Power Cost — 4.9/10 (weight 12.5%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial electricity price 60% of dimension | 4 /10 | NEM Q1-2026 wholesale prices averaged A$50/MWh (VIC) to A$144/MWh (SA) (≈US$33–95/MWh at ~0.66 AUD/USD), but delivered large-commercial energy rates run far higher: Shell Energy large-commercial flat rates from Apr-2025 were ~16.6 c/kWh (VIC) to ~23.5 c/kWh (NSW) before network c... as of | AEMO Quarterly Energy Dynamics Q1 2026 / Shell Energy large-commercial default rates (2026 / Apr 2025) www.aer.gov.au | |
| Price trajectory & exposure 25% of dimension | 5.5 /10 | Wholesale prices fell sharply (NEM Q4-2025 averaged A$50/MWh, down 44% YoY) as renewables displaced gas, but ~90% coal retirement before 2035 plus renewable-firming gaps drive episodic volatility (SA jumped to A$144/MWh in Q1-2026), leaving a mixed downward-but-volatile trajector... as of | AEMO Quarterly Energy Dynamics Q4 2025 / Q1 2026 www.aemo.com.au | |
| Cost certainty / contractability 15% of dimension | 7.5 /10 | Australia has one of APAC's deepest corporate renewable PPA markets: ~192 corporate PPAs contracting >10.7 GW since 2017, with ~3.4 GW negotiated in the record 2024 (Business Renewables Centre Australia State of the Market), giving hyperscalers a mature mechanism to lock long-ter... as of | Business Renewables Centre Australia, State of the Market Report 2024 (Mar 2025) businessrenewables.org.au |
Speed to Build — 4.8/10 (weight 17.5%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Permitting regime 40% of dimension | 5 /10 | DCs in NSW are assessed under the State Significant Development (SSD) pathway (warehouses/DCs SEPP), but assessment timeframes run near two years; NSW has ~90 DCs with 5 SSDs determined, 14 in assessment and 7 at EIS stage, and approved the southern hemisphere's largest DC (A$3.1... as of | NSW Planning SSD warehouses & data centres / Johnson Winter Slattery analysis (2025) www.planning.nsw.gov.au | |
| Observed construction velocity 35% of dimension | — | Excluded — no E1–E2 evidence available; weaker evidence cannot enter a base score. | — | — |
| Labor & supply capacity 25% of dimension | 4.5 /10 | Infrastructure Australia's 2025 Market Capacity Report puts the infrastructure workforce at ~204,000 (Oct 2025) against a ~141,000 shortfall (peaking ~300,000 by 2027), with technicians/trades fill-rates of just 57% and electrician demand of 53,000–84,000 more by 2050 for the ene... as of | Infrastructure Australia 2025 Infrastructure Market Capacity Report (2025) www.infrastructureaustralia.gov.au |
Regulatory & AI Policy Environment — 6.9/10 (weight 12.5%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI-specific law in force 35% of dimension | 6.5 /10 | Australia has no binding AI statute: after 2024 consultation on mandatory guardrails for high-risk AI (>300 submissions), the Dec-2025 National AI Plan confirmed reliance on existing laws and sector regulators plus a Voluntary AI Safety Standard (10 guardrails) and a new AI Safet... as of | Australian Govt National AI Plan / Voluntary AI Safety Standard (Dec 2025) www.industry.gov.au | |
| DC-specific regulation 35% of dimension | 5.5 /10 | No federal DC-specific statute, but states are building targeted frameworks: NSW's SSD pathway treats DCs as a defined development class and Infrastructure NSW ran a DC-focused consultation (feedback to 8 May 2026) addressing grid and water siting, giving moderate, evolving DC-sp... as of | NSW Planning SSD warehouses & data centres / Johnson Winter Slattery analysis (2025) www.planning.nsw.gov.au | |
| Regulatory predictability 30% of dimension | 9 /10 | World Bank WGI 2024 scores Australia at +1.72 for Regulatory Quality and +1.47 for Rule of Law (on the -2.5 to +2.5 scale), both top-decile globally, reflecting strong, stable and rules-based regulatory institutions underpinning long-horizon infrastructure investment. as of | World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators www.worldbank.org |
Fiscal & Incentives — 4.7/10 (weight 10%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enacted incentives 40% of dimension | — | Excluded — no E1–E2 evidence available; weaker evidence cannot enter a base score. | — | — |
| Headline tax burden 40% of dimension | 4 /10 | Australia's headline company tax rate is 30% (25% for base-rate entities under A$50m turnover) — high among OECD peers — and it has enacted the OECD Pillar Two 15% global and domestic minimum top-up taxes (royal assent 10 Dec 2024; IIR for FYs from 1 Jan 2024, UTPR from 1 Jan 202... as of | Australian Taxation Office — Global and domestic minimum tax (2024-2025) www.ato.gov.au | |
| Incentive durability 20% of dimension | 6 /10 | What incentives exist (R&D, Capacity Investment Scheme renewable underwriting) sit within a stable AAA-rated, institutionally strong policy environment (WGI Govt Effectiveness +1.81, 2024), so durability is high even though the absolute quantum of DC-specific support is modest. as of | World Bank WGI 2024 / Reneweconomy Capacity Investment Scheme analysis (2024-2025) www.theglobaleconomy.com |
Capital & Ecosystem Depth — 7.6/10 (weight 12.5%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Committed capital 40% of dimension | 8 /10 | Australia anchors the largest DC deal globally — Blackstone + CPP Investments' A$24B acquisition of AirTrunk (completed Dec 2024), which holds >800 MW committed to customers and land for >1 GW of growth across APAC — alongside ASX-listed NextDC and hyperscaler builds, evidencing... as of | Blackstone press release — Acquisition of AirTrunk in A$24B transaction (Sep 2024 / completed Dec 2024) www.blackstone.com | |
| Ecosystem 30% of dimension | 8 /10 | Sydney is a top-tier APAC DC hub with ~162 operational DCs nationally, all major hyperscalers present, the region's largest operator (AirTrunk) headquartered locally, multiple subsea-cable landings, and a mature listed/private capital base (NextDC, CDC, AirTrunk) — a deep, establ... as of | Certified Strategic Australia Data Centre Index (citing AEMO/Dept of Industry, Jun 2026) certifiedstrategic.com | |
| Sovereign/anchor capital availability 30% of dimension | 6.5 /10 | The Future Fund (A$335.3B at 31 Dec 2025) entered its first full year of a new mandate to weigh national priorities in infrastructure and energy transition, and in 2025 explicitly increased its holding in CDC data centres and took a stake in transmission network Transgrid — direc... as of | Future Fund 2025 portfolio update (assets at 31 Dec 2025) www.futurefund.gov.au |
Stability & Execution Risk — 8.6/10 (weight 15%)
|
Sub-factor
|
Score
|
Justification
|
Evidence
|
Source
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Political/policy continuity 40% of dimension | 8.5 /10 | World Bank WGI 2024 rates Australia at +0.79 Political Stability and +1.81 Government Effectiveness (-2.5 to +2.5 scale), reflecting a stable parliamentary democracy with high institutional capacity and orderly policy transitions — strongly supportive of multi-decade infrastructu... as of | World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators www.worldbank.org | |
| Currency, transfer & convertibility 35% of dimension | 9.5 /10 | The Australian dollar is a freely floating, fully convertible major reserve currency with no capital or profit-repatriation controls, and Australia holds AAA from all three agencies (S&P reaffirmed AAA/stable on 30 Sep 2025) — top-tier transfer and convertibility security for for... as of | S&P AAA reaffirmation / Treasury & Austrade (30 Sep 2025) international.austrade.gov.au | |
| Physical & geopolitical risk 25% of dimension | 7.5 /10 | Australia carries negligible armed-conflict/geopolitical risk and ranks 7th-most-ready on the ND-GAIN Index, but physical climate risk is real and rising: the 2025–26 bushfire season caused 5 deaths and ~386 homes destroyed, with the Australian Actuaries Climate Index logging its... as of | ND-GAIN Index (Australia) / Australian Actuaries Climate Index (2025-26) gain-new.crc.nd.edu |
Signals
Recent ingested source documents linked to this jurisdiction via extracted claims or triage mentions, newest first.
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· Capacity Media · relevance 0.70
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· Data Center Dynamics · relevance 0.70
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· Interesting Engineering · relevance 0.20
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· Bloomberg Technology · relevance 0.65
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· Bloomberg Technology · relevance 0.70
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· Bloomberg Technology · relevance 0.50
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www.ashurst.com · relevance 0.50
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www.theglobaleconomy.com · relevance 0.10
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www.blackstone.com · relevance 0.70
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gain-new.crc.nd.edu · relevance 0.00
Scores are reproducible from the frozen inputs snapshot recorded at computation time (2026-06-15T23:52:36+00:00). See the full methodology for rubrics, weights, and the evidence ladder.