Project Southgate George Town Tasmania: FAQs

Bell Bay is one of Australia's most well-equipped industrial precincts. The site already has three 220 kV high-voltage power lines running through it (operated by TasNetworks), a TasWater bulk water transfer main, and an approved heavy vehicle entrance off the East Tamar Highway.

The site is located next to the Port of Bell Bay, has excellent road links, and is well separated from homes and residential areas. After careful assessment of sites across Tasmania, it was a clear choice.

The George Town site will draw approximately 288 MW. That scale exists to train and run frontier AI models, which require sustained computing power.
Firmus’ George Town site will draw power from the grid, which in turn is fed largely by hydro, wind, and solar power — just like other major industries in the Bell Bay region. The project connects directly to three 220 kV TasNetworks transmission lines running through the site. There will be no impact on residential supply. By becoming part of the grid as a new baseload user with a maximum demand of 288MW, Firmus’ site will help to support long-term investment in clean energy.

The development is subject to finalisation of an energy supply arrangements that are currently being negotiated. These agreements will support development of new generation supply into Tasmania to support Bell Bay’s usage requirements.

A very limited amount of water is used. The AI factory is designed to operate without using any water for cooling on most days of the year. Water is only used for cooling on hot days which, based on local weather data, happens for only a small number of days per year in this region.

The equates to predicted water usage for cooling around 10 days a year — on days above 26°C. The rest of the year, dry cooling only. Total annual consumption will be the equivalent of around 50 Australian households. That's up to 99% less than a typical data centre. Wastewater from normal facility operations, such as toilets, is expected to be negligible relative to these volumes.

Firmus’ AI Factories are designed specifically for artificial intelligence, which requires a different kind of infrastructure to conventional data centres.

By designing the power, cooling, and computing systems together — rather than retrofitting AI hardware into older buildings — we can run more efficiently and significantly reduce both energy and water use compared to traditional data centres.

Firmus uses the Firmus HyperCube, a proprietary electrical and cooling system. It uses liquid cooling to remove heat more efficiently than traditional air-based systems, allowing higher performance with lower energy use and minimal water.

The Firmus HyperCube is manufactured in Australia and deployed inside our AI Factories. In Tasmania, the system uses direct-to-chip liquid cooling designed for next-generation NVIDIA platforms including GB300 and Vera Rubin, built to support evolving AI hardware over the next decade and beyond.

The buildings have been designed to sit comfortably within Bell Bay's established industrial character. The data halls are around 9 metres tall and the total building height including the supporting infrastructure is around 15 metres — consistent with the surrounding industrial precinct.

Dark, matte-finished materials have been chosen to minimise reflectivity and visual contrast. The site sits on a flat, cleared industrial platform and doesn't require significant earthworks. Surrounding vegetated areas remain intact and provide natural buffering.

The facility uses an existing approved heavy vehicle entrance off the East Tamar Highway — no new access point to the public road network is needed. Vehicles enter through the established industrial road within the Bell Bay precinct.

Day-to-day traffic will be shift-based staff commuting, plus routine service vehicles, similar to other industrial facilities in the area. 128 car spaces will be provided on-site. Occasional heavy vehicles will access the site during construction and for equipment replacement, but this is infrequent.

Firmus is committed to having a positive impact on the local community and economy. This includes providing opportunities for local employment and skills development.

During construction, the George Town project will employ hundreds of local civil, electrical, and trades contractors. We will also employ contractors who will be based off-site, who will support off-site fabrication and major equipment production.

Once operational, the AI factory will support a permanent local workforce of more than 100 full-time employees. These are ongoing, skilled roles spanning technology operations, maintenance, security, energy management, engineering, and administration, with the facility operating around the clock across three shifts.

Many of these roles are directly transferable from existing industries, including technicians, electricians, security, groundskeeping, and building maintenance. Others provide opportunities for workers in adjacent trades and technical fields to retrain and transition into long-term careers supporting advanced digital infrastructure and AI operations.

Firmus has operating infrastructure in Singapore and Australia with multiple AI Factories underway in Australia.

All Firmus AI Factories use liquid-cooled HyperCube technology. In Singapore, the system uses immersion cooling compatible with local conditions. In Tasmania, Firmus will use direct-to-chip liquid cooling for next-generation NVIDIA platforms — designed to be multi-generational, supporting evolving AI hardware over the next decade and beyond.

Firmus is an Australian technology company that designs, builds, and operates energy-efficient AI Factories. The company commenced operations Tasmania as a research and development operation about seven years ago and now operates AI Factories in Singapore, with multiple more underway across Australia.

Please reach out to community@firmus.co and we'll be in touch.