Demand for data centres accelerates across Mena

Demand is growing for data centres across the Mena region, which is “underserved” according to Hassan Alnaqbi, CEO of Khazna Data Centers.

Dubai-based Khazna, which has 14 working centres, 10 to 12 under construction and four more planned, is one of the largest operators in the region. 

“We have announced our expansion into Egypt. It will be a $250 million investment,” Alnaqbi said. 

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Artificial intelligence will be the biggest driver of growth in data centre demand worldwide, according to Mouna Essa-Egh, VP Middle East and Africa at Schneider Electric.

“The GCC data centres market is estimated at being $1.3 billion in 2023 with a compound annual growth rate [CAGR] of 13 percent, but that is without AI,” she said.

“AI is growing very fast with an estimated CAGR of 20 percent to 35 percent in the next three to five years.

The GCC “will be reaching $7 billion of AI by 2028. So, AI alone will be accounting for more than 20 percent of the data centres we are selling”, she added. 

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