Goodman Group, Australia’s largest property company, has scrapped plans for a major data centre development in the Lane Cove area of Sydney. The facility, known as Project Mars, would have represented a A$1.2bn investment and operated at 90 megawatts of capacity. The company formally withdrew its application to the local planning authority following sustained opposition from residents and community campaigners.
The proposal generated an unusually high level of public engagement during its consultation period. The project received 374 submissions from the community, with only nine expressing support for the development. According to local reporting, this represented the highest number of submissions ever received for a data centre application in the area. The proposed facility would have been constructed approximately 20 metres from the nearest residential home.
Goodman Group cited evolving policy and regulatory conditions as factors in its decision. The company noted in its withdrawal letter that the broader environment for large-scale data centre development has shifted significantly since it began the planning process in March 2025. The company stated it had engaged in extensive technical investigations, stakeholder consultations, and community engagement before reaching its conclusion.
The decision reflects broader tensions in Australia regarding data centre development. While government authorities have actively pursued investment from global artificial intelligence companies, drawn by the country’s clean energy resources and available land, substantial community resistance has emerged over concerns about water consumption, energy demands, and local disruption. The New South Wales government had recently introduced a fast-track approval programme for data centres meeting specific criteria, though this did not alter the outcome for Project Mars.
Local political representatives have characterized the outcome as a significant community victory, emphasizing the need for data centre developments to be appropriately sited and planned with community input despite their acknowledged importance to broader economic interests.
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