Africa Data Centres (ADC), the largest network of interconnected, carrier-and cloud-neutral data centre facilities on the continent, has announced that it will soon start construction on its newly acquired land in the Central Business District of Accra, Ghana.
A statement from the company said the new facility has been designed for an initial 10 MW, which can expand to 30MW depending on demand. It will be the largest facility in West Africa to date, outside of Nigeria.
Data centres are the foundation of digitally-led economic growth around the world; developing sustainable and self-sufficient ICT ecosystems is impossible without them. The new facility will be built within the scheme of the Ghana Trade Fair Redevelopment Project at La in Accra, one of the key central locations in the city. The first phase is scheduled to be completed within 12 months.
The new facility is part of Africa Data Centres’ continental expansion plans spanning 10 of Africa’s major economic hubs, including South Africa, Zambia, Kenya, Rwanda, Egypt, Morocco, Senegal, Ivory Coast, and Angola.
CEO of ADC, Tesh Durvasula, said “Our new data centre in Ghana is a significant step towards Africa Data Centres’ goal of narrowing the digital divide in the West Africa region. Hyper-scale data centres, preferred by major US tech companies, multinational corporations, banks and other local enterprises, are the speciality of Africa Data Centres. Additionally, our data centres are supported with independent solar and battery storage power, enabling us to bring digital technologies whilst mitigating our environmental impact.”
The data centre, partly funded by the United States government’s U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), is a significant initiative to accelerate private sector-led digital infrastructure and services in Africa.
CEO of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), Scott Nathan said, “DFC is proud to support African Data Centres. This new facility in Accra will be an investment in critical infrastructure helping to better link the rapidly growing African population and market to global opportunities.”
He said DFC’s commitment to strengthen ICT Infrastructure in West Africa is in keeping with the commitments President Joe Biden made to mobilize private capital for the kind of high-quality global infrastructure investments that improve people’s lives.
“This new data centre will help accomplish that in Ghana and for the region, creating jobs by improving existing business conditions while at the same time attracting data-dependent companies looking to invest and expand their operations,” he added.
US Government’s Senior Advisor, Amos Hochstein said, “This investment exemplifies the U.S. Government’s commitment under the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII) to unlock public and private capital for sustainable infrastructure investment. Alongside the data centres in South Africa and Kenya, the Ghana data centre is laying the groundwork for a digital revolution on the continent.”
The project is to be executed by Liquid Intelligent Technologies (LIT). Group CEO for LIT, Hardy Pemhiwa said “We continue to bring internationally recognised services and products through Liquid Intelligent Technologies and Africa Data Centres. Liquid already has the largest cross-border fibre network in Africa, and our data centres footprint expansion compliments this, enabling faster digital transformation on the continent,”
Welcoming the new investment, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, said, “The establishment of Africa Data Centre’s new 10MW data centre, in the heart of Accra, is a significant step towards bridging the infrastructure gap and developing further our digital economy. This investment and the Government’s drive at digitising all sectors of the economy will enable us to increase our capacity to access digital services, and help even more to attract foreign direct investment into our economy.”
