coNEXA to supply recycled water to NEXTDC Sydney data centre

coNEXA Infrastructure Partners, through its AquaNet business, is developing a major recycled water project in Western Sydney to support NEXTDC’s S4 Sydney data centre in Horsley Park. The project aims to supply up to 16 million litres of recycled water per day to cool the facility, marking what is believed to be the largest recycled water connection to a data centre in Australia.

The privately funded initiative will repurpose over 5 billion litres of treated wastewater annually that would otherwise be discharged into the ocean. Construction is scheduled to begin in November 2026, with water delivery expected to commence in late 2027. The infrastructure is designed to eventually allow other industrial users and local councils in Western Sydney to connect to the network.

This move addresses the high water consumption of data centres, which require significant cooling for servers processing digital resources and artificial intelligence. The project also aligns with new New South Wales government requirements for data centre construction and offers a more sustainable alternative to using drinking water or electricity-intensive air cooling methods.