A short lesson sequence. Work the notes in numbered order; each builds on the last.
Part I: The Domain. Who buys data center capacity, how they buy it, and how the money works. Strategy lives here — this is the context behind every procurement decision.
Assumes: Hubs 01-03. You can't price or strategize around capacity you don't understand physically.
Learning path
04.10 Hyperscalers, Colos, and Enterprises: Who Buys Capacity
The customer types — hyperscale clouds, neoclouds/AI labs, wholesale and retail colocation providers, enterprises — and what each demands in power density, cooling, and commercial terms. The structural shift: hyperscalers now lease entire build-to-suit campuses from colocation providers rather than building everything themselves. Know who the ultimate capacity buyer is, because it determines design standards, lease leverage, and whose requirements flow down into equipment specs. Builds on: Hubs 01-03 — what capacity is, physically.
04.20 Capacity Economics: $/kW/Month, Ramp, and Deal Structures
How capacity is actually priced and sold: the $/kW/month standard (wholesale ~$196-204/kW/mo in 2025-26, retail far higher), ramp schedules phasing contracted power over time, and the three deployment models — turnkey wholesale (fastest, premium priced), powered shell (buyer funds fit-out), build-to-suit (maximum control, 24-36 months). Translating business requirements into the right commercial vehicle. Builds on: 04.10 — customer types determine which deal structures apply.
04.30 Lease Structures and Commercial Terms
The contract layer beneath the pricing: triple-net leases, 10-15 year build-to-suit terms, renewal dynamics (record rent spikes on renewal), the erosion of volume discounts in tight markets, and energy/PPA terms negotiated separately from rent. These are the commercial precedents that shape what "market" means when negotiating anything — equipment, construction, or capacity — and where leverage sits in a seller's market. Builds on: 04.20 — the pricing these contracts formalize.
04.40 Powered Land as an Asset Class
How land with a credible path to electrical service became a standalone asset class: what makes powered land credible (available utility capacity, transmission access, substation proximity, interconnection feasibility, scalability), land-banking behavior (hundreds to thousands of acres, 5-10 year horizons), and why speed-to-power now beats location in site value. How a buyer diligences a powered-land deal: what proves the megawatts are real, and how the land price relates to the power timeline. Builds on: 03.20 (site selection), 04.30 (the commercial context that prices it).
04.50 How AI Is Reshaping the Market
The demand shock — US data center power demand roughly tripling toward 2030, vacancy near 1% in primary markets, 7%-plus annual rent growth — and the structural responses: bring-your-own-power (nuclear PPAs, SMRs, behind-the-meter gas), geographic diversification into power-rich secondary markets, and the wholesale seller's market. Connecting market dynamics back to procurement: timing buys, securing slots, and credible project signaling matter more than shaving unit prices. Builds on: 04.10-04.40 — the full hub, under demand shock.
Key sources: CBRE North America Data Center Trends; JLL 2026 Global Data Center Outlook; Data Center Knowledge (colocation battleground 2026); datacenters.com (investment structures, build-to-suit).