NextDC baulks at $280m price tag to buy back three data centres

Data centre operator NextDC is mulling the option of buying back three data centres from property trust Asia Pacific Data Centres.

NextDC chief executive Craig Scroggie.

Data centre operator NextDC is mulling the option of buying back three data centres from property trust Asia Pacific Data Centres, but is baulking at the $280 million price tag.

NextDC chief executive Craig Scroggie told The Australian yesterday the three properties were not worth anywhere near that sort of price range.

“The properties were recently valued at substantially less and we don’t think they are worth anything near $280m,” he said. “They are trying to sell industrial real estate at the same price as Sydney CBD prices.”

NextDC, which is the tenant at the centres in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, was offered the opportunity to buy them while APDC considered an offer from an interested third party.

APDC said it received a non-binding offer from an undisclosed third party that indicated it might be prepared to buy all three data centres for $280m.

NextDC said it had yet to receive a valid right of first refusal.

Having previously knocked back a price of $300m, Mr Scroggie said NextDC was still working to wind down APDC.

“Until we get the pre-emptive rights, we can’t really take any steps, and the wind-up action that we are pursuing remains ­unaffected by this,” Mr Scroggie said. “We want APDC wound up and sell the properties but it’s about price.”

It is understood the buyer APDC is talking with is a foreign buyer and any transaction will require Foreign Investment ­Review Board involvement.

Given the nature of the data collated and processed in data centres, the presence of a foreign buyer is expected to receive stringent scrutiny from FIRB.