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Cooling Drives SLB’s Data Center Expansion
Coverage from Data Center Knowledge, Reuters, and others
SLB has agreed to acquire Kelvion from Apollo-managed funds and Triton for approximately $3.
4 billion in cash plus $0.7 billion of assumed debt, expanding its data center cooling and thermal-management capabilities. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals, and SLB projects the combined data center solutions business will generate $4.5 billion to $5 billion in revenue in 2028. The deal strengthens SLB’s position in a segment where Kelvion identifies data centers as its largest and fastest-growing market.
If you read one thing
Reuters provides the clearest independent overview of the acquisition, its cooling rationale, and the planned scale of SLB’s data center expansion.
Latest development
This article materially clarifies how AI rack densities and water constraints are driving demand for Kelvion’s cooling technologies.
The evidence
SLB’s announcement supplies primary-source detail on transaction economics, expected synergies, and projected data center revenue.
SLB is broadening into integrated thermal management
The planned $4.1 billion Kelvion transaction would add cooling, heat-exchange and thermal-management systems to SLB’s Data Center Solutions business. The combination is intended to expand the equipment SLB can supply and more than double its revenue opportunity per delivered gigawatt.
Cooling is becoming a strategic AI infrastructure requirement
AI workloads are raising rack power densities while water constraints are increasing demand for dry, hybrid, adiabatic and waterless cooling. Kelvion’s data-center business is described as its largest and fastest-growing segment, positioning thermal management as a core infrastructure requirement rather than an ancillary system.
The expansion rests on substantial but not-yet-realized scale ambitions
SLB expects cumulative global data-center-solutions deliveries to exceed 2 gigawatts by the end of 2026 and targets $4.5 billion–$5 billion in combined revenue with $700 million–$800 million in adjusted EBITDA in 2028. These targets remain prospective because the acquisition is expected to close only in the first half of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals.
$3.4 billion USD
cash acquisition consideration
“Apollo Global Management announced that SLB has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of Kelvion, a global developer and manufacturer of thermal management solutions, for approximately $3.4 billion in cash and the assumption of about $0.7 billion of debt.”
above 100 kW
rack power density
“Dell’Oro Group research director Alex Cordovil said rising rack densities and pressure over data center water consumption are driving demand for dry coolers and hybrid or adiabatic systems, areas where Kelvion has established technology. SLB said modern GPUs are already pushing rack power densities above 100 kW, while some announced chip architectures could approach 1 MW.”
$4.1 billion USD
acquisition value
“SLB will spend $4.1 billion to acquire thermal management company Kelvion, expanding its data center business into cooling and heat rejection as AI workloads drive higher power densities.”
$4.1 billion USD
total acquisition value including debt
“SLB said it will acquire cooling equipment maker Kelvion from Apollo Global Management and funds managed by Triton for $4.1 billion, including debt, expanding its data center business amid an AI-driven boom in demand for power and cooling infrastructure.”
about $700 million USD
Kelvion debt assumed by SLB
“SLB will pay $3.4 billion in cash and assume about $700 million of Kelvion’s debt.”
SLB’s cooling expansion targets high-density, water-constrained AI data centers
The Kelvion acquisition is now more clearly tied to the technical pressures of AI infrastructure: rising rack densities and water constraints are increasing demand for dry, hybrid, adiabatic, and waterless cooling. SLB plans to integrate these thermal-management capabilities directly into modular data-center systems, including for markets where water availability or community opposition limits conventional cooling.
Previously
SLB has agreed to acquire Kelvion from Apollo-managed funds and Triton for approximately $3.4 billion in cash plus $0.7 billion of assumed debt, expanding its data center cooling and thermal-management capabilities. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals, and SLB projects the combined data center solutions business will generate $4.5 billion to $5 billion in revenue in 2028. The deal strengthens SLB’s position in a segment where Kelvion identifies data centers as its largest and fastest-growing market.