CNN reported on October 26, 2026, that Anthropic had signed a lease to become the first major tenant of Zerra DC’s proposed Western Downs Digital Park near Dalby, Queensland. The project was not formally approved at the time of CNN’s report. The proposal has drawn local questions about water, electricity and public consultation, alongside hopes for investment and jobs.
What the reported agreement involves
The proposed campus would have four buildings, each described as the size of five football fields. Anthropic says the facility would answer user queries to Claude rather than train large language models there. That is the company’s stated intended use for the site.
ABC News reported on September 16, 2026, that the local development application had been filed with council the previous month and that the lease was subject to approval from Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board. ABC also reported that Anthropic aimed to start using the center in 2027. CNN’s October 26 report said the project was still not formally approved, making that 2027 date an earlier target rather than a confirmed start date.
Plans for water and power
Zerra DC says it plans to use air cooling, harvest and recycle rainwater, develop the site in phases, and install a battery system to buffer spikes in electricity demand. The company says air cooling uses less water than evaporative cooling but requires more energy.
Those plans sit alongside local concerns about water. Farmers near the proposed site have questioned whether rainwater collection would be dependable in dry conditions and raised concerns about bore water. Their questions matter in a region where agriculture is an established industry.
CNN reported that, if approved, the development would connect directly to the electricity grid and use a mix that includes coal and natural gas. Queensland had obtained an exemption from the federal government’s proposed renewable-energy requirement for AI data centers. Anthropic policy head David Masters said the company intended to use virtual power purchase agreements, with a preference for renewable energy; the specific new-build projects remained under discussion in his October comments.
Residents have also questioned how much say the community will have before a decision. CNN reported that a Queensland parliamentary petition opposing the proposal had more than 23,000 signatures as of October 26. Western Downs Mayor Andrew Smith said the council was awaiting planning advice and described its role as limited to providing information, while residents interviewed by CNN called for a public meeting.
What the worker figures describe
CNN’s figure of 1,500 refers to temporary accommodation planned for construction workers. It is not a count of jobs. ABC News separately reported projections of ongoing employment, including an expectation of thousands of roles and a statement by Smith referring to around 1,000 jobs. Those were forecasts, not employment already created.
The proposal therefore brings together several distinct questions: the approvals required, the companies’ plans for water and power, and the community’s role in planning. CNN’s October 26 report placed the project’s formal approval status at that point at pending, while ABC’s earlier account had reported the council application and Foreign Investment Review Board condition.
