Developer Tritax Big Box has has purchased a 74-acre site near Heathrow with plans for a £365m data centre.

It is the first move into the data centre market for the firm which specialises in distribution centres.

The planned data centre at Manor farm will be one of the biggest in the UK with phase one containing 448,000 sq ft of data halls across three floors. 

Tritax Big box has submitted a planning application for phase one with construction expected to start in the first half of 2026 and completion by the end of 2027.

The firm said the scheme would pave the way for further data centre projects.

Chairman Aubrey Adams said: “This is a decisive and exciting first step for the Company in the very attractive data centre market.

“The combination of Manor Farm’s prime London location and accelerated access to critical grid connection agreements creates the opportunity to develop quickly one of the UK’s largest data centres and deliver exceptional returns for our shareholders.”