Spark Completes Majority Stake Sale of Data Center Business to Pacific Equity Partners
February 1, 2026
In a significant move reshaping New Zealand's digital infrastructure landscape, Spark New Zealand has finalized the divestment of a controlling stake in its data center operations. This transaction underscores the intense investor appetite for high-quality digital real estate and cloud service enablers, as demand for data processing and storage capacity continues to surge globally.
The telecommunications giant announced the completion of its sale of a 75 percent interest in the data center business to funds managed by Pacific Equity Partners (PEP). First agreed upon in August 2025, the deal transfers Spark's data center assets and operations into a newly established, standalone entity named TenPeaks Data Centres. Michael Stribling, formerly Spark's data centers general manager, has been appointed as the CEO of the new company.
Spark confirmed it received initial cash proceeds of NZ$453 million from the transaction, a figure slightly below the initially anticipated NZ$486 million due to the timing of capital expenditures. Furthermore, the company stands to receive deferred cash proceeds of up to NZ$98 million, contingent upon the achievement of specific performance-based objectives by the end of 2027. The total transaction values the data center business at up to NZ$705 million, which represents a 2025 pro-forma EBITDA multiple of 30.8 times.
The governance of TenPeaks will see Spark retain a strategic influence through board representation. Spark CEO Jolie Hodson and CFO Stewart Taylor have been appointed as non-executive directors on the new company's board, joining PEP's Andrew Charlier, Evan Hattersley, and Michael Bendeli.
Commenting on the strategic rationale, Spark CEO Jolie Hodson stated that the sale "provided a funding pathway for a planned expansion of data centre capacity to over 130MW." This highlights the core driver behind the deal: unlocking capital to accelerate significant growth in infrastructure scale to meet future demand.
The formation of TenPeaks Data Centres, backed by PEP's specialized Secure Assets Fund, signals a new chapter of focused investment and expansion in the sector. For the industry, this deal exemplifies a growing trend where established telecom operators partner with specialized investment firms to fund the massive capital requirements of next-generation data center build-outs, potentially leading to more rapid capacity deployment and increased market competition.
Source: reseller
