Google still searching for Sydney HQ

Google still searching for Sydney HQ
Staff reporterDecember 7, 2020

Google has abandoned plans to move its Australian headquarters to Sydney's White Bay Power Station.

The tech giant had entered into exclusive negotiations with the NSW government last year to potentially take over the development of the 10-hectare site .

But the company said it would not be able to make the move within its timeframe.

The power station, the last from the early 20th century still standing in Sydney, sits on a 10-hectare harbourfront site.

“We are grateful to the NSW government and UrbanGrowth NSW for their efforts to deliver on their impressive vision for White Bay Power Station,” a Google spokesman said.

“Through the genuine and productive negotiations in the last few months we’ve come to realise that achieving that vision isn’t possible within our timeframe. So we’ve mutually agreed with UrbanGrowth NSW to discontinue negotiations over the site.”

The tech giant is currently headquartered at Pyrmont in the Accenture building across the street from The Star casino complex, and in Fairfax Media's building On Darling Island in Pyrmont in the Sydney CBD.

Google is thought to be looking for as much as 100,000sq m of space. 

The government, through its transformative arm UrbanGrowth, oversaw the earlier 13 bids, so will have to find an alternative solution for its vision of a "knowledge and technology" hub for the site.

The former premier Mick Baird said the aim was to create the "best technology precinct in the world", comparable with similar proposals like Roosevelt Island in New York.

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