NextDC Pushes Back Melbourne Data Centre Expansion as Shares Fall

Australian data centre operator NextDC told the Australian Securities Exchange on Wednesday 21 October 2026 that delays to power pole work by the network company Jemena would push the expansion of its West Footscray M3 site in Melbourne back to the 2027/2028 financial year. The Guardian reported that the company's shares fell from over $9 to $5.69 after it came out of a trading halt, the pause in trading that applies while a company makes an announcement.

Along with the timing change, NextDC cut its net revenue guidance, its forecast of income, to between $475 million and $500 million, down from between $615 million and $640 million. The company cited deferred billing and the delivery of contracted capacity at M3.

The M3 expansion is meant to raise the site's capacity from 60 megawatts to 225 megawatts. According to the company, that capacity has already been sold to customers. When finished, the expansion would also double the site to about 10 hectares.

The power problem centres on poles. NextDC told the market that Jemena had suspended work on 22-metre power poles, up from 11 metres, which are needed to bring electricity to the site. Jemena, the licensed electricity distributor for Melbourne's northwest, suspended the work over safety concerns, a lack of site access arising from community and stakeholder opposition, and the local council's refusal to approve the poles pending further community consultation. NextDC CEO Craig Scroggie confirmed that Jemena had suspended power connections for the M3 site in late September 2026.

Planning is a separate hurdle. The permit application for stages six and seven of the M3 site has been with the Victorian government since February 2026. NextDC blamed the change of premier, from Jacinta Allen to Ben Carroll, and the cabinet reshuffle that followed for delays. Scroggie said the earliest expected planning approval is February 2027. Victoria will enter caretaker mode, a period when a government handles mainly routine business, before the state election on 28 November 2026.

Citigroup analysts said the M3 delay was likely related to Jemena pausing work on the electricity lines meant to serve the site.

NextDC and Jemena are evaluating other ways to supply power to the expansion, including alternate pole locations through industrial zones or underground connections. NextDC said construction of new data halls, the buildings that house computing equipment, will continue despite the delay in grid supply from Jemena.