Analysts say that the domestic data center market has emerged as a key asset group for alternative investments as demand for artificial intelligence (AI), supply constraints, and global capital inflows work at the same time.
According to CBRE Korea, a global commercial real estate service company, on the 13th, the possibility of exit (investment recovery) of high-quality data center assets is also drawing attention as the scarcity premium has expanded around assets that have secured power and high-quality tenants.
The report comprehensively analyzed the expansion of global data center demand and domestic supply constraints due to the spread of Generative AI, and presented the scarcity premium of assets with power and superior tenants, the possibility of exit due to the diversification of global investors, and the diversification of buyer pools as major investment points.
According to the report, global data center demand is entering a structural growth phase with the spread of Generative AI. Global data center power consumption is expected to exceed about 1100 TWh in 2030 from about 200 TWh in 2015.
The Korean data center market has passed an early stage centered on telecommunications companies and entered an advanced stage led by asset managers and global professional operators. Although the supply of data centers in the metropolitan area is expected to exceed 1450 MW by 2028, new developable areas are limitedly selected depending on whether or not power is secured. Accordingly, the market is shifting to a ‘power-following’ structure, which is reorganized around areas where power can be secured.
The rental market for data centers in the metropolitan area also reflects scarcity of supply. The vacancy rate of data centers in the metropolitan area remains less than 5%, and the average rent rose more than 70% last year compared to 2019. As consumers dominate the area even before the supply volume comes to the market, the timing of securing rental demand is also being accelerated.
Investors’ expectations for a price increase are also high. In CBRE Korea’s 2026 survey of investor intentions, 88 percent of domestic investors predicted a rise in data center asset prices.
Choi Soo-hye, managing director of CBRE Korea Research, said, “The Korean data center market is in a transition period when global AI demand is expanding, supply constraints, and capital inflows are combined, highlighting investment attractiveness and possible exit.” “As data centers are greatly affected by facilities, operations, and technological changes, a precise investment strategy is needed to comprehensively review the lease structure, the possibility of renewing contracts, and the cost of responding to technology obsolescence.”