Why MTN is building Tier-4 data centre in Nigeria—CTO

The Chief Technical Officer of MTN Nigeria, Mohammed Rufai, said the company is currently building a 1,500-rack Tier 4 data centre to enhance Nigeria’s digital infrastructure.

Rufai, who disclosed this while speaking with the media over the weekend, said the facility would be Africa’s largest data centre and play a pivotal role in meeting the growing data demands and digital needs of businesses and consumers nationwide.

MTN’s data centre came as the latest of several such projects that have been announced in Nigeria lately as tech companies move to bridge the digital infrastructure gap. Earlier in March this year, Airtel Africa performed the groundbreaking for its NXTra data center project in Lagos.

High demand

Providing further explanations on why MTN, which is the largest telecom operator in Nigeria is building a data centre, Rufai said the company saw the critical need for expanded data processing capabilities, driven by significant growth in data usage and the emergence of new services.

“We see a high demand in the market, with data usage growing significantly. To cater to this demand and prepare for future growth, we are expanding and modernizing our data centre capacity now. This is to ensure we are ready for expansion at the right time,” he explained.

According to him, the new data centre will support MTN’s infrastructure and serve as a vital resource for businesses across Nigeria.

“Businesses that require data centre capacity can now forgo maintaining their server rooms. Our facility will provide the space and services needed, enabling companies to digitalize their operations and improve efficiency,” Rufai noted.

He said the data centre would also enhance the delivery of content from major tech companies like Meta and Google, bringing content closer to Nigerian users and improving access speeds. This local hosting of content will significantly boost user experience and network efficiency, he added.

Economic benefits

Highlighting the expected benefits of the project on Nigeria’s economy, the MTN CTO said the project is not just a technological investment but also a catalyst for economic growth.

“By providing scalable and adaptable infrastructure, it will enable businesses, particularly MSMEs, to leverage cloud services and other digital solutions. This, in turn, will drive innovation, efficiency, and competitiveness across various sectors of the economy,” he said.

Rufai emphasized MTN’s readiness to partner with startups and MSMEs, offering numerous opportunities for collaboration, particularly in cloud services.

Aligning with MTN’s Ambition 2025 strategy, Rufai said the data centre signals the company’s commitment to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals. He added that the facility would also eventually utilize efficient cooling systems and a combination of traditional energy sources, gas, and renewable energy, which would significantly reduce its carbon footprint.

What you should know

In a recent interview with Nairametrics, the Chief Executive Officer of Open Access Data Center (OADC), Dr. Ayotunde Coker, declared that Nigeria was set to attract over $600 million investments through data centers going by the number of projects that have been announced recently.

• According to him, this is bound to have a ripple effect on the economy as the projects will create jobs.
• He noted that research has shown that for every $10 million put into data centers, the actual systemic benefit in the environment could be anything 50 times to 100 times.
• While launching its data centre in Lagos, Airtel Africa projected that building the data centre would provide jobs for over 1000 Nigerians.
• According to the company, out of the 1000 jobs, 250 would be permanent once the project is deployed and at capacity.