UK-based real estate investment trust Tritax Big Box has purchased a 74-acre parcel of land near Heathrow, London, for a potential data center development.

Located within the Slough availability zone, the land – dubbed the Manor Farm site – is set to deliver up to 147MW of power at full build-out.

The first phase will see a 107MW data center spanning 448,000 sq ft (41,600 sqm), with construction expected to start in H1 2026, subject to planning consent. It will be developed on a “powered shell” basis.

A possible second phase will add 40MW to the site. Completion has been slated for H2 2027.

Tritax Big Box added it has acquired a 50 percent share in a joint venture with an unnamed European renewable and low-carbon energy power generator.

The JV will provide the Manor Farm site with grid connections to two independent substations.

The land has been acquired from Airport Industrial Property Unit Trust (AIPUT), which will receive an initial £70 million for the land and a further consideration of 21 percent of the Phase 1 development profits.

Tritax Big Box REIT is a British real estate investment trust (REIT) traditionally focused on investing in distribution centers. The London Stock Exchange-listed firm is managed by Tritax, a property management business.

The Heathrow area has historically been an established data center market in London, with the likes of CyrusOne, Vantage, Digital Realty, Yondr, Iron Mountain, DataBank, Colt, AWS, and Equinix all having a presence in the region.

A secondary market exists in the London Docklands area; home to Telehouse, Global Switch, Centersquare, Tata Communications, and Lumen.

In the UK, the government recently announced data center projects worth £14 billion ($16.96bn) as part of its new AI action plan. The government said it will set up what it calls AI Growth Zones to speed up planning approvals and give them better access to the energy grid.