Investors in CleanArc take undisclosed stakes in Prime.
US data center firm Prime has secured new investment and is planning further expansion into Europe with projects in Germany and Finland.
The company this week announced new equity investments from private equity firm Snowhawk and investment manager Nuveen. The size of the investments were not disclosed.
The firms join existing institutional investors Macquarie Capital, Ares Management, and Siemens Financial Services.
"Given their large capital base, long-term commitment as well as operating experience across the data center landscape, I am delighted to welcome the Snowhawk and Nuveen team as partners," said Nicholas Laag, founder and CEO of Prime Data Centers. "This partnership marks a pivotal step in Prime's accelerated growth as we expand within our existing territories and enter new markets. Together with our existing esteemed institutional partners, we are strategically positioned to deliver the next 4GW of power, reaffirming our commitment to powering the future needs of our customers."
Prime's current portfolio is largely centered in the US around California, with campuses also in development in Dallas and Austin, Texas; Chicago, Illinois; and Phoenix, Arizona.
The company, which counts Macquarie Capital as an investor, announced plans to move into Europe last year with a three-building, 124MW campus in Saeby, in northern Denmark. A 40MW site is also planned in Madrid, Spain.
Prime says it has a 4GW roadmap of power across markets in the US and Europe, including Chicago, Phoenix, Austin, Los Angeles, Silicon Valley, Frankfurt, Berlin, Helsinki, and Madrid. It aims to deliver 1GW of capacity by 2028.
Details around Prime’s planned German and Finnish facilities have not been shared.
Founded in 2022, Snowhawk is a private investment firm targeting investments in cloud, connectivity, and technology services. It has previously taken a majority stake in CleanArc, the new data center firm led by Vantage founder Jim Trout.
"Snowhawk's investment in Prime demonstrates our continued belief in the generational opportunity associated with cloud and AI to change the way we live and work," said Brian McMullen, managing partner & co-founder at Snowhawk. "We look forward to supporting Nicholas and his seasoned team as they continue to serve the requirements of the most discerning cloud operators and enterprise technology companies."
Nuveen is the investment manager of the TIAA pension fund. It has some $1.3 trillion in assets under management. It, too, has previously invested in CleanArc.
TIAA – The Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America-College Retirement Equities Fund – is an American financial services organization providing retirement services in the academic, research, medical, cultural, and governmental fields. TIAA was part of the consortium alongside DigitalBridge that acquired Vantage in 2017. Nuveen Green Capital has previously provided funding towards the redevelopment of the former Compaq Computer campus in Houston, Texas, into a data center campus, and refinanced iM Critical’s Miami data center.
Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal counsel to Snowhawk and Nuveen. Guggenheim Securities, LLC and Moelis & Company, LLC acted as joint financial advisors to Prime Data Centers, while Goodwin Procter LLP and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP acted as legal counsel.
