Johor has cemented its position as Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing data centre hub, with total capacity nearly doubling over the past year to 5.8GW as of Q2 2025, according to Knight Frank’s latest Asia-Pacific Data Centre Report.
The surge in growth has been underpinned by strong government support, including Malaysia’s national Data Centre Planning Guidelines, and by booming demand from social media platforms and artificial intelligence (AI) workloads. In the first half of 2025 alone, Johor recorded 260MW of leasing activity, with 61% of take-up attributed to social media platforms. Vacancy rates have fallen to just 1.1%, among the lowest in the region.
“Malaysia, and Johor in particular, is emerging as an important hub for digital infrastructure in the region. We’re seeing strong growth momentum, especially with the rise of cloud adoption and AI-driven demand,” said Amy Wong, Head of Research & Consultancy at Knight Frank Malaysia.
Regional Growth Momentum
Johor’s expansion anchors a record-breaking wave of new data centre announcements across Asia Pacific, which hit 13GW in H1 2025, a 160% year-on-year increase. Other key markets highlighted include:
Tokyo, Japan: Capacity at 4.2GW (+2.7% YoY), but leasing slowed sharply to 41MW.
Melbourne, Australia: Capacity nearly tripled to 4.7GW, with 95% of take-up AI-driven.
Seoul, South Korea: Capacity steady at 1.8GW, but 86MW of leasing led by enterprise and cloud users.
Mumbai, India: Hyperscale growth accelerating, with two 500MW campuses confirmed and state approval for 1.5GW of green data centre parks.
Across the region, hyperscalers including AWS, Microsoft, Google, and Meta have collectively pledged over US$160 billion in 2025, with Asia Pacific capturing a significant share of this capital.
Johor’s Strategic Advantage
Knight Frank noted that Johor’s growth trajectory reflects a combination of policy support, investor appetite, and proximity to regional hubs. “With vacancy levels as tight as 1.1%, the future expansion will be contingent upon power availability and sustainable growth. Johor is fast maturing into a prime hub, attracting not only social media platforms but also AI and cloud providers who see Malaysia as a long-term strategic base,” said Chelwin Soo, Director of Land and Industrial Solutions at Knight Frank Malaysia.
The Malaysian government’s proactive stance, through clear planning guidelines and infrastructure facilitation, has placed the country firmly on the radar of hyperscale providers, particularly as operators balance immediate scalability needs with long-term expansion runway.
The Energy Challenge Ahead
While Johor’s rise is remarkable, the report warns that synchronising technological growth with energy supply remains the key challenge. “Operators are being asked to build facilities that can flexibly support both cloud and AI workloads. Locations like Johor that combine supportive policies with sufficient power runway are in a strong position — but ensuring synchronisation between technology evolution and energy supply remains the ultimate challenge,” said Fred Fitzalan Howard, Head of Data Centres, Knight Frank Asia Pacific.
Looking Forward
As capacity tightens and demand accelerates, Johor is expected to remain a focal point in Asia Pacific’s digital infrastructure ecosystem. However, sustaining this momentum will depend heavily on how effectively Malaysia can expand power capacity, streamline land planning, and balance rapid growth with sustainable practices.
