This Is What It Takes to Get a Data Center Financed

What It Covers

Travis Wofford from Baker Botts explains data center financing structures, including securitization mechanics, interconnection delays averaging five years, tenant credit quality requirements, and how private credit competes with traditional lending for AI infrastructure projects.

Key Questions Answered

• •Securitization structures: Data center ABS uses 40-50% loan-to-value ratios with investment-grade tenants on ten-to-fifteen year leases, anticipating bond repayment in five-to-seven years despite thirty-year rated maturities, focusing on contracted cash flows rather than GPU values.
• •Interconnection bottlenecks: Grid connection approval takes five years minimum before construction begins, with dates frequently pushed back. Developers need separate interconnections for both data center load and power generation, creating major timeline uncertainty that affects financing structures and project viability.
• •Private credit advantage: Private credit offers 10-12% rates with 15% IRR targets through nondilutive capital, accepting riskier underwriting than traditional banks. Companies choose it over equity to avoid dilution and over banks when projects don't meet conventional lending standards for early-stage developments.
• •Powered land value: Real estate developers shift focus to securing land with completed interconnection studies, repurposing projects originally planned for solar or wind. This land becomes exponentially more valuable for data centers than original uses, creating crowding-out effects across the economy.