Anthropic, the US company behind the Claude AI models, has signed on as anchor tenant of a proposed A$31.9 billion data centre campus outside Dalby in Queensland’s Western Downs, Premier David Crisafulli announced in mid-September 2026.
The Western Downs Digital Park would be Australia’s largest data centre and is Anthropic’s first data centre infrastructure deal in the country, according to The Urban Developer. Its scale dwarfs existing facilities: the initial stage alone would be several times larger than AirTrunk’s SYD3 campus in Sydney, which runs at more than 320MW. Crisafulli said the agreement put Queensland “at the forefront of locking in data sovereignty”.
The site
The campus is planned for 725 hectares about 37km north-west of Dalby and roughly 250km from Brisbane. The land is currently home to the Wambo Cattle Company’s 24,000-head feedlot and sits next to the coal-fired Kogan Creek Power Station, The Urban Developer reported.
The build
The project is being developed by Singapore-based hyperscale developer Zerra DC in a consortium with Macquarie Capital and Dexus’s Australian Data Centres platform, which holds a 25% stake. The plans show four initial buildings delivering 1.44GW, with a potential expansion to six buildings reaching 2.16GW, built over four to six years.
Anthropic aims to begin using the first stage in 2027. Reporting describes it as an inference site, meaning it would run Claude to respond to user requests rather than train new models.
The power and the pushback
At full capacity, forecast electricity use is similar to that of about 1.5 million average Australian households. The Climate Council estimates the campus could produce up to 6.6 million tonnes of emissions a year based on Queensland’s current grid, and local group Save Our Darling Downs has raised concerns about energy use and regional aquifers.
Zerra DC says the site will be fully air-cooled, using about 16.5 kilolitres of water a day once operating. The Western Downs mayor has said the project could bring around 1,000 jobs to the region.
Not approved yet
The Western Downs Regional Council is still assessing the application, and the Foreign Investment Review Board has to clear the deal before construction can proceed.
Jack’s take
Amodei wants the models slowed down, not the buildings. Australia has the land and it has the power, though the power and emissions questions still have to get through the approval process. If this turns into real work out in the Western Downs, so be it.