Partner Peter Bergan shared insights with Facilities Dive on how surging demand and financing pressures are reshaping data center lease negotiations, particularly as neocloud tenants enter the market alongside traditional hyperscalers.
Bergan noted that landlords are gaining leverage as these projects require project-level financing, leading developers to push back on termination rights that once allowed hyperscalers to walk away from leases. He also highlighted how the rise of AI-first neoclouds is prompting developers to build stronger contractual protections and future-proof the physical shell of data centers for evolving rack loads and power demands.
“Landlords have more leverage generally because the reality is, even with hyperscalers, these things have to be financed,” he said. “Nobody is undertaking a multi-billion-dollar construction project without project-level financing in place.”
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Peter Bergan is a Partner in Vinson & Elkins’ Real Estate practice, advising clients on complex real estate transactions with a focus on data center leasing, development financing, and infrastructure projects.
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