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Naver said Brookfield will fund up to $9 billion of GPUs and data centers through a new vehicle, clearing the condition for NVIDIA's $1 billion stake, with 55 MW planned for 2027 and 200 MW for 2028.
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Brookfield's investment is capped at up to $9 billion. Naver plans to begin operating 55 MW in the first half of 2027 and scale to 200 MW in 2028, according to Naver.
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Naver Corp. said on Oct. 27 that it signed an agreement with Brookfield Asset Management under which Brookfield will invest up to $9 billion in GPUs and data centers for Naver's AI factory business.
Brookfield will set up a special purpose vehicle (SPV), tentatively named Asset Co., and supply computing power to Naver Cloud, the AI factory operator, according to Naver's release. Naver Cloud will pay usage fees linked to business revenue, and Naver will guarantee those obligations for up to eight years. Naver said the guarantee itself causes no cash outflow or cost. Brookfield will supply 100% of Asset Co.'s capital, yet Naver expects to consolidate it as a subsidiary because Korean accounting rules (K-IFRS) recognize its control.
Brookfield's up to $9 billion goes into a special purpose vehicle that Naver is to consolidate, and Naver guarantees the fee obligations for up to eight years, according to Naver.
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Naver plans to begin operating 55 megawatts (MW) in the first half of 2027 and scale to 200 MW in 2028, with its GAK Sejong hyperscale data center in Sejong, South Korea, as the core hub. That is about 3.6 times the opening phase. The structure shifts upfront capital to Brookfield, which Naver says eases its initial investment burden, yet Asset Co. stays in Naver's consolidated accounts and the guarantee ties Naver to the fee stream.
Naver said the signing meets the precondition for NVIDIA's strategic equity investment and that it will promptly complete the third-party capital increase, with details to follow. A July 24 joint statement, as the Korea Herald described it, called Brookfield's role a nonbinding term sheet and made NVIDIA's investment depend on Naver securing at least $9 billion in committed financing. Naver's July 27 filing, also per the Korea Herald, sets NVIDIA's purchase at 7,241,564 new shares at 204,500 won each, a 4.5% stake worth about 1.48 trillion won ($1 billion), with payment due Oct. 30. That would make NVIDIA Naver's third-largest shareholder after the National Pension Service and BlackRock.
NVIDIA will collaborate on its DSX platform to raise the infrastructure's efficiency, Naver said. Brookfield's July 27 release said the 200 MW build is expected to use NVIDIA Vera Rubin and Blackwell systems. An interim 100 MW by the end of 2027 appears in Edaily's Oct. 27 report and the Korea Herald's July coverage, not in Naver's release. Edaily also reported a separate Naver disclosure of an 18.74 trillion won debt guarantee, 64.73% of its equity, which it described as the nominal total of GPU service fees through 2034 if the full $9 billion is used. Naver's release and the other reports Voltgrid read do not give that figure.
Naver's first phase is close to the 50 MW AI data center KT Cloud is building in Ansan for 2029, as Voltgrid reported, though KT Cloud's number is total power receiving capacity and Naver has not said which measure its megawatts use. Elice, by contrast, saw its shares fall 32.04% on its Oct. 20 Kosdaq debut after a 201.1 billion won offering, which in Voltgrid's reading raises the cost of equity for Korean AI data center builders.
Brookfield had not posted its own release on the signing at the time of writing, so the Oct. 27 terms rest on Naver's release and filing as relayed by the press. NVIDIA's payment is due Oct. 30, and Naver has not published the capital-increase details. The $9 billion is a ceiling: no drawdown schedule or fee rate is public, and Asset Co. is a tentative name. Edaily said no payment under the guarantee is confirmed and the amount may shift with GPU spending, interest rates and exchange rates. No source says whether the 55 MW, 100 MW and 200 MW figures are critical IT load or utility supply, or how GAK Sejong will be powered. Naver had named no customers as of July, and none appear in the Oct. 27 coverage.
