Real estate investor Castleforge and data centre operator Galaxy Data Centers have received planning consent for a 15MW data centre development at Galaxy’s campus in Redhill, outside London in Surrey.

The new development – approved by Reigate and Banstead Borough Council – will include four data halls and support a local waste heat recovery initiative.

The joint venture unveiled plans to expand digital infrastructure capacity in the London market with a £100m-plus investment in the Redhill Data Centre campus in December 2024.

The scaling of the campus will see an additional £200m investment with a gross project value of around £500m.

Situated on the existing 3.1-hectare plot at Foxboro Business Park, the consented project comprises a single two-storey data centre with four data halls and an accompanying office block.

Heat for locals

The development has been designed to achieve a BREEAM Very Good rating and incorporates a range of low and zero-carbon technologies.

Waste heat generated by the facility will be reused on site, and the design enables future export of waste heat to the neighbouring residential heat network.

The expansion comes amid surging demand for digital infrastructure in London that is outstripping the current power supply. That makes established hubs attractive to investors, the joint venture said.

“Demand for capacity in and around London continues to outpace supply, and this consent enables us to bring forward the additional power and scale required to serve enterprise, hyperscale and edge customers,” said Mike Adcock, head of investments at Castleforge.

“This planning consent is a pivotal step in realising the long-term vision we set out when we acquired Redhill alongside Castleforge.”

The Redhill campus currently has three buildings spanning 11,800 sq m serving Fortune 500 enterprises in financial services, AI and other sectors.

The joint venture said customers value the site’s secured green energy, low-latency connectivity to data centre hubs including Slough and the Docklands, and scalable infrastructure.

They added that London remains the largest data centre market in Europe, and the second biggest globally after Northern Virginia.