Corporate Development Director – Land Acquisition in London

Position Summary

The Corporate Development Director – Land Acquisition will be responsible for day to day sourcing, evaluating, negotiating, acquiring, new data centre land opportunities across Europe and APAC, with particular focus on the UK, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Japan.

Leveraging a strong network of brokers, utilities, municipalities, government agencies, developers, investors, telecom operators, landowners, and other key stakeholders, this individual will originate both on-market and off-market opportunities aligned with Colt DCS's growth strategy and long-term capacity requirements.

The role combines commercial origination, transaction execution, and site development assessment. The successful candidate will have day-to-day responsibility for leading the full acquisition process from opportunity sourcing through acquisition, investment approval, and handoff to the Colt DCS Real Estate Delivery team.

The individual will lead the initial screening and qualification of opportunities across all key dimensions, including return analysis, land acquisition, zoning, planning and permitting, power availability, connectivity, environmental constraints, development feasibility, architectural test fits, customer demand, and strategic fit. The role will also coordinate all diligence activities required to assess prospective acquisitions, working closely with the broader Colt DCS Real Estate Team (Design, Engineering, Development, Power, Delivery teams) and in particular with with the Real Estate, Site Selection & Preconstruction Director, who will act as a single point of reference for detailed technical DD workstreams. While specialist teams will perform detailed assessments within their respective areas of expertise, the Corporate Development Director will be responsible for coordinating the overall diligence process, ensuring risks and opportunities are understood, and developing investment recommendations.

In addition, the role will serve as the primary commercial lead throughout the transaction process, managing day-to-day engagement with sellers and counterparties, leading commercial negotiations, agreeing Heads of Terms, coordinating transaction documentation, and driving opportunities through signing and closing.

The role forms part of the Corporate Development team and reports to the Senior Director of Corporate Development.

Key Responsibilities

Opportunity Origination & Market Development

• Originate and develop a pipeline of strategic data centre land opportunities across Europe and APAC through existing and market relationships and industry networks.
• Identify, evaluate, and secure on-market and off-market acquisition opportunities aligned with Colt DCS's growth objectives.
• Build and maintain relationships with brokers, landowners, developers, utilities, municipalities, government agencies, telecom operators, investors, and other key stakeholders.
• Monitor market dynamics, infrastructure developments, regulatory changes, and competitive activity to identify future opportunities.
• Develop and execute market-entry and land acquisition strategies for target geographies.

Acquisition Leadership

• Lead the day-to-day execution of the full land acquisition process from origination through acquisition, investment approval, and handoff.
• Act as the deal lead and primary internal owner for acquisition opportunities.
• Drive all workstreams required to assess, negotiate, approve, and acquire development opportunities.
• Ensure alignment across internal stakeholders and maintain momentum throughout the acquisition lifecycle.
• Provide regular updates, recommendations, and escalation points to Colt DCS leadership team

Site Assessment & Due Diligence

• Conduct initial screening and qualification of opportunities across commercial, technical, financial, regulatory, legal and strategic criteria.
• Evaluate:
• Land ownership and acquisition considerations.
• Zoning, planning, permitting, and regulatory requirements.
• Power availability, grid connection strategies, scalability, and delivery timelines.
• Fibre connectivity, route diversity, and network accessibility.
• Environmental, infrastructure, and site-specific constraints.
• Development feasibility, delivery risks, and constructability considerations.
• Customer demand and commercial attractiveness.
• Financial returns and investment metrics.
• Conduct initial reviews of site layouts, masterplans, and architectural test fits.
• Coordinate all technical, commercial, legal, financial, planning, environmental, and development diligence workstreams.
• Work closely with the Real Estate, Site Selection & Preconstruction Director, who will act as a single point of reference for detailed technical DD
• Challenge assumptions, evaluate findings, and ensure key risks and mitigation plans are clearly understood and documented.

Commercial Negotiation & Transaction Execution

• Act as the primary commercial interface with landowners, developers, brokers, investors, and other counterparties.
• Lead day-to-day commercial negotiations throughout the acquisition process.
• Develop transaction structures aligned with Colt DCS's commercial, strategic, and development objectives.
• Negotiate and agree Heads of Terms, Exclusivity Agreements, Option Agreements, Purchase Agreements, easements, rights of way, and other transaction-related arrangements.
• Coordinate legal negotiations and documentation with internal Legal teams and external counsel.
• Drive transactions through signing, closing, and acquisition completion.
• Resolve commercial, contractual, and transaction-related issues throughout the acquisition process.

Investment Analysis & Governance

• Develop business cases, investment analyses, and acquisition recommendations with the support of the broader Corporate Development Team
• Prepare investment committee papers, executive presentations, and supporting documentation.
• Present opportunities, risks, commercial terms, and recommendations to senior leadership and investment committees.
• Support governance, approval, and decision-making processes.
• Ensure opportunities meet Colt DCS investment criteria and strategic objectives.

Stakeholder Management & Handover

• Manage internal and external stakeholders throughout the acquisition lifecycle.
• Maintain strong alignment across Corporate Development, Real Estate, Legal, Finance, and Sales teams.
• Ensure, in conjunction with Real Estate, Site Selection & Preconstruction Director successful handover of approved opportunities to the Delivery team, including the transfer of diligence materials, assumptions, stakeholder relationships, commercial commitments, and key project information.

Experience & Qualifications

• Preferred Bachelor's degree in a technical field (Engineering, Architecture, Power or related) with a post Business / Finance qualification
• Significant experience in data centre development, land acquisition, infrastructure development, real estate development, telecommunications infrastructure, or related sectors.
• Proven track record sourcing, evaluating, negotiating, and executing complex land acquisitions or development transactions.
• Strong network and experience across Colt DCS's target markets, particularly the UK, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Japan.
• Strong understanding of data centre site selection requirements, including power, connectivity, planning, permitting, environmental, and development considerations.
• Experience assessing greenfield and brownfield development opportunities.
• Experience leading complex due diligence processes involving multiple technical and commercial stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience negotiating Heads of Terms, land options, purchase agreements, and associated transaction documentation.
• Strong commercial, financial, valuation, and negotiation capabilities.
• Experience preparing investment cases and presenting recommendations to senior management and investment committees.
• Ability to balance commercial objectives with technical and development considerations.
• Strong stakeholder management, communication, and influencing skills.
• Willingness to travel internationally as required.

Ideal Profile

A highly commercial and relationship-driven dealmaker with the technical understanding and transaction experience required to identify, assess, negotiate, and execute complex data centre development opportunities.

The ideal candidate combines strong origination capabilities with a practical understanding of the technical, planning, infrastructure, and commercial factors that determine site viability. They are comfortable leading multidisciplinary diligence processes, engaging with utilities and telecom providers, navigating planning challenges, negotiating transaction documentation, and presenting investment recommendations to senior leadership.

Most importantly, this individual takes ownership of opportunities on a day-to-day basis, driving every aspect of the acquisition process from origination through diligence, negotiation, investment approval, acquisition completion, and handover.