Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: November 2023 – ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC), one of the world’s fastest-growing data centre providers, and Basis Bay, a leading provider of sustainable cloud and green data centres, have announced the formation of a joint venture partnership, for the development, construction, and operation of data centre projects in Kuala Lumpur and Cyberjaya in Malaysia.

The new joint venture plans to build their first data centre campus in Cyberjaya, located approximately 30 kilometres outside Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia. This new data centre campus will support the development of two buildings on over three acres of land, delivering close to 20MW of IT load. With Malaysia’s growing demand for digital infrastructure, the joint venture is also actively sourcing for new opportunities to expand further within the country.

The first building named ‘Cyberjaya DC.2’ comprises a Rated-4 facility designed to be a highly secure, eco-green premium data centre that meets the global standards of security and sustainability, taking into account the environmental nuances unique to the surrounding habitat. The data centre will focus on serving local and international banks, financial institutions, government agencies and other similar mission-critical industry segments and will be ready for service in 2024. 

The second building named ‘STT Kuala Lumpur 1’ will serve the hyperscale segment. Construction of the first phase is expected to commence in the coming months and is anticipated to be completed by 2025.

This strategic joint venture is a unique DDI (domestic direct investments)-FDI (foreign direct investment) partnership between Basis Bay and STT GDC. On the domestic front, Basis Bay brings a deep understanding of the local landscape, regulatory nuances, and valuable local relationships, including its network of enterprise customers.

Basis Bay presently offers colocation and data centre managed services from two data centres in Malaysia, one each in Glenmarie and Cyberjaya, and boasts a long heritage of being one of the first vendors and carrier-neutral data centre operators in Malaysia with a track record of more than 27 years. 

The FDI infusion from STT GDC, with its portfolio of 85 data centres spanning 10 geographies, brings global expertise, international standards, best practices, advanced technology, and access to a wider market including hyperscale customers across its global platform. 

“With this unique hybrid DDI-FDI joint venture, we will create a dynamic space in the fast-moving and growing data centre industry, especially in Malaysia. This partnership is strategically positioned to meet the volume and scale requirements of hyperscalers while simultaneously delivering the premium, super high availability needs of financial institutions and the like. This partnership will also emphasise the much-needed local participation and control, thus addressing data sovereignty concerns. Basis Bay provides premium cloud services and will continue to be a service provider of data centre services tailored for financial institutions,” said Dato’ Praba Thiagarajah, Executive Chairman, Basis Bay. 

“STT GDC’s expertise in operating data centres to the highest standards and its commitment to building a global platform based on responsible, dependable, and replicable processes align well with Basis Bay’s established local operating track record. We are confident of establishing a leading data centre platform in the country. This strategic venture will not only add another crucial market to our global data centre platform but also reinforce our expanding foothold within Southeast Asia, deepening our roots in this dynamic high-growth region,” said Lionel Yeo, Chief Executive Officer, Southeast Asia, STT GDC. 

“The joint venture between Basis Bay and STT GDC provides Malaysia a world class hyperscale data centre facility and emphasising AI integration into its services. This joint venture would also form a Centre of Excellence to train local high-end talents for regional and global demands in the data centre industry. MDEC’s mandate is to drive the digital economy and accelerate Malaysia’s digital transformation. Through a national strategic initiative like Malaysia Digital (MD), we are committed to creating a digital ecosystem that nurtures innovation, empowers businesses, and enables digital inclusion,” said Ts. Mahadhir Aziz, Chief Executive Officer, Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC).

Furthermore, MDEC and MIDA are working closely under the Digital Investment Office platform to realise this DDI-FDI hybrid investment and provide the requisite support as the single window for DC investments, providing end-to-end facilitation for investors. 

With a new and enhanced framework, Malaysia Digital seeks to transform the nation’s digital capabilities and boost the digital economy through the introduction and execution of various MD Catalytic Programmes (PEMANGKIN). Malaysia Digital, as an overall catalyst, supports the drive for the country to achieve a contribution of 25.5% to the national gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025. We are poised to surpass our target.

With this partnership, STT GDC will expand its footprint in Southeast Asia and strengthen its position as a leading provider of data centre solutions in the region, catering to the growing demand for reliable, resilient, and responsible infrastructure to support digital transformation initiatives.

Malaysia’s digital economy is poised for significant growth and expected to contribute 25.5% to GDP by 2025 with projections indicating a value of US$34 billion by 2025.

(This article was adapted from a press release)