Goldman Sachs China Data Centers: China Forum 2026 Key Takeaways: Shanghai Athub (603881, NC) - Land Acquisitions to Capture AI Demand

Goldman Sachs engaged with Shanghai Athub (603881.SS, Not Covered) at the China Forum on March 6, 2026. The company currently operates 371MW of capacity, distributed across the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region (40%), the Yangtze River Delta (45%), and the Greater Bay Area (15%). Retail capacity remains under 20MW, with wholesale revenue primarily driven by a single large hyperscale cloud service provider. Management anticipates 10-20MW of contract renewals by the end of 2026, with no expectations for pricing increases or mandatory retrofitting. The Langfang project is the only campus currently under construction, offering 43MW of total capacity with a 1.5 billion yuan capital expenditure and a power density of 10-20kW per rack. The first building has been delivered without tenant occupancy. Management highlighted 2026 as the strongest year for demand growth in recent history, projecting total order volumes to more than double year-over-year, driven primarily by AI applications and token growth. To expand capacity, the company plans to prioritize land acquisitions and project mergers in western China, leveraging lower power costs and favorable local policies. The company targets acquiring land for over 50MW of capacity, subject to NDRC approval. While current project acquisition EV/EBITDA multiples exceed last year's historical range of 7-11x, management remains opportunistic. The company prefers debt financing over equity, targeting a debt-to-cash ratio of up to 5:1, leveraging corporate bond rates of 1.99%. Furthermore, Shanghai Athub intends to utilize future acquired projects for upcoming C-REIT applications, as existing assets require extensive preparation time.