Firmus lands USD $10 billion to fund AI factories push

Firmus has secured a USD $10 billion debt financing facility led by Blackstone and supported by Coatue-one of the largest private debt financings in Australian history, according to the company.

The Sydney-headquartered AI infrastructure company said the facility will fund the next phase of Project Southgate, which it describes as a national rollout of its "AI Factory" platform based on the NVIDIA DSX reference architecture.

Blackstone is participating through funds managed by Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, Blackstone Credit & Insurance, and affiliated funds. Coatue is backing the transaction as a supporting investor, according to the announcement.

Project Scale

Firmus said AI factories are under construction across multiple sites in Australia, with plans to deploy thousands of GPUs.

Project Southgate is expected to scale to 1.6 gigawatts of infrastructure through 2028. Firmus said each factory is purpose-built for energy efficiency and "token production".

Firmus positioned Australia as a base for large-scale AI infrastructure, citing energy pricing and availability, a skilled workforce, and export-ready infrastructure. It did not disclose site locations, customer names, or deployment timelines.

The company said the facility will accelerate AI factory deployment, infrastructure manufacturing, and energy integration, and support service for hyperscale and AI-native customers globally.

Investor View

Blackstone said AI-related infrastructure is a key investment theme, linking the Firmus financing to growth in AI computing demand and data centre build-outs.

"The picks and shovels powering the AI revolution are one of our highest conviction investment themes, and we are excited to finance Firmus' continued growth. AI is driving one of the most significant infrastructure build-outs in decades, and we believe Australia can play a central role in that transformation," said John Watson, Senior Managing Director, Blackstone.

Coatue was described as an investor with a research-led approach to technology and infrastructure. The announcement did not disclose the size of Coatue's participation or how the debt facility is allocated among the investor group.

Company Plans

Firmus said the financing supports its plans to scale what it calls energy-efficient AI factories, citing demand for AI compute from customers outside Australia.

Co-CEO Oliver Curtis said the company intends to expand deployment rapidly.

"This milestone reflects the trajectory of Australia as a global player in powering AI," said Curtis. "With Blackstone and Coatue's financing, we're helping meet the rising global demand for AI compute. On the ground, we're focused on rapidly scaling our energy-efficient AI Factories to meet demand and create lasting value for both our customers and the broader local economy."

Blackstone said it manages USD $1.3 trillion in assets under management across multiple investment strategies. Coatue said it manages more than USD $70 billion across public and private markets.

Firmus said it has offices in Australia and Singapore, and that it builds AI factories using proprietary technology it says reduces total cost of ownership. Project Southgate is expected to continue scaling through 2028.