TM and Nxera hold groundbreaking ceremony for Johor data centre

TM and Singtel's Nxera just held a groundbreaking for their data centre in Johor, which will launch by 2026.

The upcoming data centre campus will be at Iskandar Putera, just 16km from Singapore and a short drive from the Tuas Checkpoint.

As I wrote previously, the 64MW data centre campus can be scaled up to 200MW in accordance with market demand.

The TM-Nxera data centre is expected to be completed in 2026, according to remarks by the guest of honour this morning.

Malaysia-Singapore cooperation

Gobind Singh Deo, the Minister of the newly established Ministry of Digital, spoke about how the new data centre will support Malaysia's ambition as a hub for AI development and innovation.

Key highlights of his speech:

🔸Malaysia approved a total of RM114.7 billion (US$24.6 billion) in investments for data centres between 2021 and 2023.

🔸The data centre was billed as the first investment project of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ).

🔸Quote: "Today’s groundbreaking marks a milestone in the deepening economic relations between Singapore and Malaysia, and I look forward to the outcomes we can achieve through close collaboration.”

Incidentally, Singapore Senior Minister of State Low Yen Ling was also a guest at the groundbreaking.

Malaysia, data centre hub

Malaysia is forced to move quickly regarding data centres. There is no disputing the economic benefits of the incredible growth of data centres both in Johor and in other parts of Malaysia.

However, the massive surge of data centres merely means it is coming up against the same issues around sustainability and resources such as water and electricity as Singapore.

For instance, while Malaysia has plenty of solar, it isn't necessarily the most suitable renewable to power data centres, which runs around-the-clock.

At W.Media's Singapore Cloud and Datacenter Convention last week, MDEC's Tze Meng Tan noted that despite the focus on solar, it is not a long-term solution for data centres.

He said: "A 100MW data centre [will require a] 600MW solar farm, which takes 1,200 acres of land; and a similar amount of battery storage for [stabilizing the grid]. We think something to replace solar is required."

What's next

For now, there are signs that Malaysia is drawing up a national guideline for data centres. Who knows, it might take a leaf from Singapore's Green Data Centre Roadmap unveiled in May.

The TM-Nxera data centre falls under the purview of Kavin Wong, the country manager of Singapore and Malaysia at Nxera.

I look forward to the chance to tour the completed data centre soon!