Plans have gone in to transform an industrial site in Slough which was once used as a paint factory.

The Akzonobel Decorative Paints site on Wexham Road was sold by Slough Borough Council for an amount in excess of £100million to reduce its debt in 2022.

Originally the site, which ceased operating as a factory in 2018, had been earmarked by the council for up to 1,000 homes, with planning permission granted to Panattoni in 2020.

Slough Observer:

However a damning report found that the council had to spend at least £250million to build the new homes and did not have a "clear idea" how to fund this.

The site sold to the highest bidder in November 2022, with then council leader James Swindlehurst (Lab: Cippenham Green) saying it was “probably the single biggest beneficial transaction” he’s ever seen.

It has now been revealed that Equinix was the buyer of the site, with plans having gone in to build a data centre on the land following demolition of the current building.

READ MORE: Slough Trading Estate's data warehouses: A look inside a data centre

An application to the council states the company's plans to decontaminate the site, demolish the remaining buildings, before undertaking ancillary engineering work to stabilise the ground conditions and deliver a development platform with ancillary retaining walls.

The site will be Equinix's eighth data centre in Slough and will take three to four years of preparation before construction of the site can begin.

Equinix is set to begin construction of its seventh Slough data centre later this year. 

Bruce Owen, Managing Director, Equinix UK said: “Equinix is proud to be an active member of the Slough community with our six existing sites, and so we fully understand the importance of ongoing investment to keep Slough's position as the connectivity cornerstone of the world.

Slough Observer:

"This proposed revitalisation of the former Akzonobel Decorative Paints site on Wexham Road will transform the site from its industrial past and establish a new state of the art facility for the future.

"The new site will bring positive impacts on the local economy, with a boost to local employment and training, as well as investment in Slough’s community through the creation of a technology campus, improved public spaces and enriched biodiversity.“

The plans boast that the site will be a "vital piece of digital infrastructure"

Equinix offers rooms and space to outside company's who wish to store their computers, ICT equipment or storage in a temperature regulated and secure environment.

The data flowing through centres helps consumers lives run smoothly, whether it be through digital transactions going through the network or communication of government services.

A public consultation has launched on the plans which closes on March 27 and can be found at equinixwexhamroaddatacentrecampus.com