(Left to right) MDEC director and head of division Wan Murdani, Gaw Capital president and managing principal Kenny Gaw, Deputy Minister of Communications and Digital Teo Nie Ching, A3 Capital founder and managing partner Yusof Wahid, Infinaxis Data Centre CEO Zahri Mirza, Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) executive director of investment promotion Najihah Abadi, Infinaxis Data Centre managing director and head Ong Kok Chye, and A3 Capital founder and partner Amos Ong at the Infinaxis Data Centre groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday. (Photo by Sam Fong/The Edge)

CYBERJAYA (Oct 25): Malaysia is seeking to become an “Asian Digital Tiger” by positioning itself as the next big data hub, according to Deputy Minister of Communications and Digital Teo Nie Ching.

Teo said that Malaysia has the potential to become Southeast Asia’s next big data hub and that the country’s achievements in the global data centre space have laid a strong foundation for the goal.

“Malaysia is fast becoming a regional data centre hub and an appealing investment destination as a result of increased digital infrastructure expenditures, including cable landing stations, more underwater cables, 5G, and improved fibre connectivity.

“I’m optimistic [that] Malaysia can be the ‘Asian Digital Tiger’ with substantial investments, and collaborations with esteemed organisations like Infinaxis position us as the next big data hub,” Teo said during the groundbreaking ceremony of Infinaxis Data Centre in Cyberjaya on Wednesday.

The Infinaxis Data Centre, which is projected to be completed in the second quarter of 2025, will feature a data centre facility spanning over 17,000 square metres of gross floor area, equipped with 10 data halls, offering up to 80 kilowatts of power density per rack and delivering a 12-megawatt information technology (IT) load.

The facility is set to facilitate Malaysia’s increasing emphasis on digitalisation and is readily suitable for hyperscalers, AI services, cloud providers and larger enterprises.

According to Infinaxis, Malaysia’s data centre market is projected to experience a growth of about 7% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2022 to 2027, reaching a value of more than US$2 billion by the end of the forecast period.

The growth will be driven by the increasing demand for data centres in the country, which stems from the rising internet usage and the large volume of data generated by various sectors.

Infinaxis chief executive officer Zahri Mirza noted that the company has secured pre-leased tenants for this data centre and also acquired land nearby to serve as an expansion facility for this data centre.

“We are beginning our journey here today in Cyberjaya, with the first steps towards our inaugural data centre. This marks the beginning of our journey to spearhead innovation, sustainability and expansion in the region, to cater to the demands of customers. This world-class facility will surely be vital in Malaysia’s own digital economy goals,” he said.

It is worth noting that Infinaxis is one of the companies under the Data Centre and Cloud Industry cluster which was awarded Malaysia Digital status by the Ministry of Communications and Digital earlier this year. Malaysia Digital Status companies are offered a set of incentives, rights and privileges, subject to certain conditions.