Firmus to launch A$7 billion IPO on October 6

Australian data centre operator Firmus plans to launch an initial public offering on October 6, aiming to raise approximately A$7 billion (US$5 billion). If the over-allotment option is exercised, the total could reach US$5.5 billion. This would represent the second-largest IPO in Australian history, trailing only Telstra’s 1997 listing.

The institutional bookbuild is scheduled for October 6 and 7, with a prospectus expected on October 8. Retail investors can bid from October 12 to 19, and shares are slated to begin trading on the Australian Securities Exchange on October 22. Founder shares will be subject to escrow arrangements, with 10 percent released after one year and 39.9 percent after two years.

Firmus, which focuses on infrastructure to support artificial intelligence demand, currently has more than 900MW under contract across seven sites described as ‘AI factories’. This capacity includes an anchor tenancy from OpenAI. The company faces both high demand for computing power and growing local opposition regarding the power and water consumption of its data centre projects.