Africa Data Centres to become the first East African, EDGE® certified facility

Africa Data Centres is adding 1MW of capacity to its Data Centre facility in Nairobi, Kenya. The build began in mid-June, it will take an estimated 40 weeks to complete and will be the first EDGE® certified data centre in the region.

EDGE® certification is a green building certification system for emerging markets created by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group. It is a quantifiable way for developers to optimise designs, leading to a more marketable product and a better investment while promoting sustainability simultaneously. EDGE® certification also helps keep certification localised, fast and inexpensive to promote more green construction by enabling developers to certify projects at a comparatively lower cost.

The announcement comes on the back of the expansion announcement that Africa Data Centres made in November last year around building two more data centres in the region for approximately $200 million. At the time, the company said it had begun the development of its second Data Centre of up to 20MW of IT load and was securing land for a third facility.

According to Dan Kwach, Managing Director, Africa Data Centres, “East Africa Region is one of the Africa Data Centres’ key markets as there is a skyrocketing- demand for data centres in the region. The demand for digital technologies has accelerated as businesses of every type and size in Africa move to quicken their digital transformation journeys. The immediate 1MW facility is a key part of this expansion as Kenya is a critical African market in terms of being at the vanguard of hyperscale Data Centre demand and digital transformation in East Africa”.

The construction of the new facility will play a significant role in job creation. One of Africa Data Centres’ missions is to promote job creation, partner with local companies to build facilities, strengthen the economy, and promote social growth in all the regions of operations.

The expansion sits within the already Tier III Certified environment popularly known as the East Africa Data Centre facility. The Sameer site is in the Sameer Business Park, the country’s capital. This expansion brings an additional 717 square meters of white space, accommodating approximately 230 racks.

Speaking of the build, Kwach says, “The cold aisle containment will be completed to maintain cooling efficiencies and dedicated fresh air systems will manage humidity control for the hall. In addition, all critical infrastructure and security systems will be managed and monitored around the clock. The facility will be ISO27001 and PCI DSS compliant to ensure top information security too”.

The new facility aims to pave the way for Africa Data Centres hyperscale customers to deploy technology solutions to the region in low latency. This is one of three expansion projects earmarked for East Africa and is a significant milestone for the organisation, as it highlights the tremendous growth opportunity it sees in Kenya and the continent as a whole.