Is AirTrunk’s Green Loan a Boost for Sustainable Growth?

AirTrunk has secured a JP¥191.6bn (US$1.24bn) green loan to refinance and expand its TOK1 hyperscale data centre campus in East Tokyo, marking the largest data centre financing completed in Japan and signalling a significant shift towards sustainability-focused digital infrastructure investment.

The hyperscale data centre operator will use the loan to refinance existing facilities and support the next phases of development at TOK1, which is designed to scale to more than 300MW of capacity. Structured under AirTrunk's Green Financing Framework, the funding represents a milestone in linking large-scale digital infrastructure expansion with measurable environmental commitments.

The company began construction on an expansion that will add more than 100MW of IT load to the Tokyo campus, providing additional infrastructure to support cloud platforms and artificial intelligence workloads as demand for digital infrastructure grows across Japan.

Green financing framework drives expansion

The financing was led by SMBC, MUFG, Crédit Agricole CIB and Société Générale as Global Coordinators. A further eight banks participated as Mandated Lead Arrangers and Bookrunners, including BNP Paribas, The Chiba Bank, DBS Bank, E.SUN Commercial Bank, Mizuho Bank, Natixis, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation and United Overseas Bank.

The loan's structure under AirTrunk's Green Financing Framework means funded projects must meet strict energy-efficiency standards designed to ensure data centres operate significantly more efficiently than regional averages. This approach aims to reduce the energy required to deliver the same computing capacity, directly addressing one of the sector's most pressing environmental challenges.

"Japan is one of the world's most important cloud and AI markets, and we're committed to building the digital infrastructure that enables its long-term growth," says Robin Khuda, Founder and CEO of AirTrunk.

"This landmark financing enables us to accelerate the expansion of TOK1 and continue delivering the capacity our customers need today, while preparing Japan for the extraordinary compute demands ahead."

Sustainability commitments embedded in capital structure

The financing aligns with AirTrunk's sustainability commitments and Japan's broader energy transition strategy. The initiative supports AirTrunk's 2030 Net Zero (Scope 1 and 2) commitments, embedding environmental accountability into the company's capital structure.

Margin incentives linked to the loan will be directed into the AirTrunk Social Impact Fund. The programme supports community initiatives across Japan including STEM education, digital equity programmes, biodiversity and conservation projects, sustainable innovation and disaster relief.

"This is the largest data centre financing ever completed in Japan and a testament to the deep collaboration between AirTrunk and our banking partners," says Masato Hori, Associate Vice President Treasury Japan at AirTrunk.

"The structure of the facility reflects our commitment to transparency, sustainability and innovation in capital markets, and further strengthens AirTrunk's financing platform across the region."

Aligning digital infrastructure with national decarbonisation

The loan forms part of AirTrunk's broader expansion strategy in Japan, where the company has invested heavily to support the country's accelerating adoption of cloud computing and AI services. The operator announced OSK2, its second hyperscale data centre in Osaka, alongside the establishment of a new Japan headquarters.

Combined with existing developments, AirTrunk's investment in Japan now exceeds US$8bn. Across four campuses – TOK1, TOK2, OSK1 and OSK2 – the company expects to deliver approximately 530MW of total capacity once all facilities are fully built.

The expansion aligns with Japan's national digital and energy strategies. According to the government's Green Transformation programme, the initiative aims to mobilise ¥150tn in public and private investment to accelerate decarbonisation and next-generation infrastructure.

Japan's Basic Plan for Artificial Intelligence identifies hyperscale data centres as a critical component of national compute capacity and secure data localisation – areas that AirTrunk's Tokyo expansion is intended to support.

"This milestone reflects our credibility of delivering sustainable digital infrastructure at scale and the strength of our relationships with financial markets in Japan," says Nori Matsushita, Head of Japan at AirTrunk.

"As we expand TOK1, we remain focused on supporting local communities, investing in resilient infrastructure and contributing to Japan's digital transformation."