Data centre project to begin in NT

A $120 million data centre project is expected to begin in the Northern Territory during early 2021.

The IOT Data Centres (IOTDC) will help to position the Northern Territory as a central data and communications hub, connecting both the east and west coasts, as well as providing additional information gateways into the South-East Asian region.

As the first in a series of 10 other facilities around Australia, the Darwin centre will receive an immediate investment of $12 million, with an expected total project value in the Northern Territory of $120 million. Working together with Vertiv, TotalSecure, Wolfe Systems, Mist a Juniper Systems Company, TPG and Intersector Capital, the IOTDC facility has been slated for early 2021 with subsequent phases to follow.

“Data centres are the core foundation infrastructure needed for economic growth. Ultimately, data is what runs the world and there is a natural acceleration in demand for data centre services, as people and businesses rely more on the digital ecosystem for activities including banking, shopping, education, remote work and entertainment. We are always demanding more of the internet, and more than ever, our daily lives depend on data and data centres. This will be a really important infrastructure piece for Darwin’s recovery,” said Steve Shelley, VP of integrated modular solutions at Vertiv.

With increased demand placed on the internet and data centre services due to COVID-19, there have been significant infrastructure challenges to businesses. The IOTDC data centre will see the NT become one of the first locations in the world to receive an upgrade in infrastructure capability in order to satisfy increased business needs.

By bringing investment from outside of the Territory, IOTDC is preparing the region for inevitable demand which comes from better integration with the large international consumer markets, as well as new requirements to service emerging technology industries.

TPG, soon to be a part of the merged Vodaphone-TPG organisation, has recently provided to IOTDC its terms in relation to its services within this project. It is hoped that this will enable IOTDC to create new enterprise capability in the region, aligned with the NT’s Terabit Territory aspirations.

The expected head of the new Vodafone-TPG organisation, Iñaki Berroeta, has said “Right now, we want to be part of the solutions, and offer constructive suggestions about how to best manage the challenges our industry is currently facing … As a new third force in providing full service connectivity solutions for the enterprise and public sectors, we will be motivated to provide better, more up-to-date solutions for our customers. This will help business and government to overcome the problems of older technologies, and in turn will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of Australian private and public sectors.”

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