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Equinix, the world’s largest digital infrastructure firm headquartered in the United States, is intensifying its presence in Africa. The Nasdaq-listed data operator has announced a substantial investment of $390 million to expand its operations across the continent, focusing on building data centers in the Sub-Saharan region.
This move follows closely on the heels of Equinix’s acquisition of MainOne, a prominent West African data center and connectivity solutions provider, for $320 million less than two years ago. With MainOne’s established presence in Nigeria, Ghana, and Ivory Coast, Equinix initiated its journey into the African market.
Having already established itself in Nigeria, a key data center hub in Africa, Equinix now aims to bolster its presence in West Africa while also expanding its operations in South Africa. Moreover, the company is exploring opportunities to enter the eastern region of the continent.
Sandile Dube, Equinix’s managing director for South Africa, highlighted the company’s strategic approach, emphasizing a focus on areas that offer promising business prospects. Equinix envisions establishing key hubs across Africa, akin to its presence in Europe, with initial emphasis on Lagos, Johannesburg, and potential expansion to Nairobi.
Equinix typically enters new markets through acquisitions of top-tier digital infrastructure solutions providers. However, in some instances, it begins by constructing international business exchange (IBX) data centers. In December 2022, Equinix announced plans to invest $160 million in building a data facility in Johannesburg, South Africa, with an initial IT capacity of 4 megawatts. Following the first phase, Equinix aims to expand the facility to 20 megawatts, covering over 100,000 square feet of collocation space.
Despite Africa comprising 17% of the global population, its data center capacity remains less than 1% of the global total. However, industry analysts forecast significant growth, with the continent’s IT load projected to reach 1,226.8 megawatts by 2029, driven by an anticipated 600 million mobile connections.
Rising trends in online shopping, digital payments, and smartphone gaming are contributing to the increased demand for data centers in Africa. It is predicted that the total raised floor area of data centers will expand to 5.2 million square feet by 2029.
Equinix is not the only major player capitalizing on this growth opportunity. Amazon and Microsoft are also investing in data center infrastructure, particularly from South Africa, which boasts the continent’s largest collocation space.
Source: Benjamindada