Overview
- The company announced on Monday that CEO Craig Scroggie will forgo his fiscal 2027 short‑term and long‑term incentives and the board withdrew a planned increase to non‑executive director pay while incumbent NEDs agreed to a 10% fee reduction.
- The immediate trigger was Jemena’s suspension of installation of the large transmission poles for the West Footscray M3 site and the local council withholding consent, a delay NEXTDC says defers about A$140 million of contracted customer revenue this financial year.
- The guidance cut and project pause prompted a market rout that saw NEXTDC shares fall more than 40%, wiping roughly A$3 billion from its market value and forcing the company to trim capital spending and pause land purchases.
- NEXTDC said it is cutting its capital program (reported reductions around A$750 million), is considering asset sales to conserve liquidity, remains within financial covenants, and will update investors at its November 20 annual general meeting.
- The board has started a governance reset that includes Chairman Douglas Flynn confirming he will retire once a successor is appointed and plans to add two independent non‑executive directors in Q1 2027 while shareholder and legal scrutiny has emerged.