South Korea’s SK Telecom said it will spin off its data center unit into a new company, SK Horizon, as part of a broader push to expand artificial intelligence infrastructure.
The new entity will be majority-owned by SK Telecom, which will retain a 51% stake. Private equity firm KKR will take a 29% stake through funds it manages, while the IMM Investment-Stonebridge consortium will hold the remaining 20%, according to a filing. The total equity investment amounts to KRW 3.08 trillion, equivalent to approximately $2.3 billion.
SK Horizon will consolidate SK Telecom’s existing data centers, including eight facilities across Seocho, Ilsan, Bundang, Gasan, Centum, Yangju, and Pangyo, with a combined capacity of 318 megawatts. The company will also oversee new projects under construction in Ulsan and Guro, alongside plans to expand submarine cable infrastructure.
The spin-off is structured with a ratio of 0.84 for SK Broadband, the surviving entity, and 0.16 for SK Horizon, based on net asset values. SK Broadband will continue to operate fixed-line, media, and enterprise businesses, while SK Horizon focuses on AI data center infrastructure.
SK Telecom also plans to establish SK Hyper, a separate entity launched in July 2025, to develop additional data center capacity. SK Hyper aims to reach 5 gigawatts of capacity by 2029 and 15 gigawatts by 2035 as part of the group’s long-term AI infrastructure strategy.
The spin-off and establishment of SK Horizon are expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2027, subject to shareholder approval and regulatory clearances.
