Dhaka, Nov. 3 -- The developer of one of Australia's biggest planned data centres scrapped its target start date after a regulator said it needed longer than usual to set environmental parameters, a setback to the country's ambitions to be a fast-track destination for AI investment.

Startup Energy North, which says it has development finance for a sprawling gas and solar-powered data centre on a cattle ranch in the country's remote north, 683km (424 miles) from the nearest city, had given a "first power" date of Jun 28, 2028, in regulatory filings four months ago.

But after the Northern Territory environment regulator said in an Oct 7 ruling it was suspending its seven-week deadline to decide what hurdles the project must clear, the dev...