Financial research concept

Data Center Capacity Under Construction: Megawatts Being Built

Data center capacity under construction measures megawatts of power capacity currently being developed, helping investors assess near-term supply growth and capital deployment.

By Lee BaileyPublished Sep 20, 2026
Research context

See what supports this page, how current it is, and where comparable or historical context is available.

Research date
Sep 20, 2026Use the dated article and cited sources for the definition, examples, and stated limitations.
Operating-model context
12 connected conceptsPart of the reviewed Data Center Operating Model; issuer definitions remain distinct where disclosed.
Company examples
1 reviewed companyRelationships reflect supported examples, not a normalized cross-company KPI ranking.
  1. Megawatts under construction show supply that is moving toward service
  2. Construction capacity is not the same as available capacity
  3. Scope matters
  4. Primary-source examples
  5. Part of the Data Center Operating Model
  6. See It in Company Research
  7. Continue Research

Data center capacity under construction measures the megawatts of data-center capacity currently in active development under the issuer's stated project scope.

It is a near-term development-supply measure, not in-place leased capacity.

Megawatts under construction show supply that is moving toward service

Digital Realty reported 1,169 megawatts of projects underway as of March 31, 2026.

That figure gives investors a physical view of capacity being built before it becomes stabilized operating inventory.

The number is especially useful when read with Data Center Pre-Leased Development Percentage, because the same amount of construction can carry very different lease-up risk depending on how much is already committed.

Construction capacity is not the same as available capacity

Projects under construction may still require power delivery, building completion, customer fit-out, commissioning, and lease commencement.

A megawatt in an active project should therefore not be treated as immediately revenue-producing capacity.

Scope matters

Digital Realty reports capacity under construction across consolidated and unconsolidated development projects under its stated methodology.

Other operators may report cabinets, critical load, gross building power, or phased campus capacity instead of directly comparable megawatts.

Primary-source examples

Data center capacity under construction is most useful as a near-term physical development pipeline measure. Pair it with pre-leasing, stabilized yield, future development capacity, and signed-not-commenced backlog.

Part of the Data Center Operating Model

Connect bookings, in-place rent, utilization, interconnection, renewal pricing, signed-not-commenced backlog, development capacity, pre-leasing, future buildable capacity, stabilized yield, construction cabinets, and commencement timing to understand data-center growth economics.

How the model fits together
  • Capacity and recurring monetization: Cabinet utilization shows how much Equinix cabinet capacity is billed. Digital Realty annualized rent and Equinix interconnection revenue are separate recurring-revenue lenses, so they add monetization context without forming a standardized cross-company formula.
  • Bookings, backlog, and repricing: Equinix Annualized Gross Bookings capture near-term recurring revenue expected to start within 90 days, while Digital Realty signed-not-commenced backlog captures future annualized GAAP base rent awaiting lease commencement. Renewal rental-rate change then shows repricing on expiring Digital Realty leases. These measures describe different stages and must not be treated as interchangeable.
  • Development capacity and lease conversion: Capacity under construction and sellable cabinets under construction show near-term supply being built, while future development capacity shows longer-dated buildable runway. Pre-leased development percentage shows how much construction is already spoken for, estimated stabilized development yield frames expected economics at maturity, and signed-lease commencement lag shows how quickly bookings convert into in-place rent. These issuer-defined measures add development and lease-conversion context rather than forming a standardized cross-company formula.

See It in Company Research

These companies are examples of how the concept is reported or discussed in public filings. Definitions can differ by issuer; these links open company research rather than a normalized metric comparison.

Continue Research

Continue from the concept into the Grizzly Bulls research surface that best matches the next question. These links are research continuations, not recommendations or required steps.

Compare stocks

Compare data-center operators

Continue into stock comparison for development capacity, pre-leasing, backlog, rent, utilization, interconnection, capital intensity, and valuation context.

Continue research

Explore more topics in the Financial Research Encyclopedia.