The construction of data centres in East Africa has been on the rise, especially in Kenya, which is now referred to as the silicon savanna of Africa.
IX Africa is developing East Africa’s largest hypercloud-ready campus on a 4.3 acre site in Nairobi – Kenya’s growing technology epicentre and at the heart of East Africa’s densest concentration of major network connectivity. We have been appointed to develop this 18.9 MW state-of-the-art carrier neutral data centre facility, which will act as an advanced hub to meet the demands of the world’s leading hypercloud customers.
Key information
- Location:
- Nairobi, Kenya
- Date started:
- 2020
- Completion date:
- 2024
- Client type:
- Real estate
- Main services:
- Project and cost management
Data on the East African horizon
On the Eastern seaboard of the African continent, Kenya provides a gateway into an African market of over 300 million people. The region has experienced significant broadband userbase growth in the past eight years and an increase in data centre development is needed to reduce latency, optimise data traffic flow, reduce operational costs for both internet service providers and users, and enhance data protection.
The region has several key infrastructure developments to support the ease of data centre delivery including expansive inland reticulation of optical fibre, availability of stable green power; smart city initiatives, increased support for the digital economy, and the skilled workforce required to design, construct, and operate data centres.
Silicon savanna project management
We supported IX Africa to set up the baseline project costs, procurement strategy and process, and oversaw and led the consulting team through the pre and post contract phases of the project. This included:
- Management of multiple procurement packages
- Project delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Management of the integration and delivery of the project business case with the project delivery schedule
- Project management
- Cost control using our digital transformation project CostX
To meet IX Africa’s requirements, we also remotely coordinated the design workshops with the data centre consultant and local consultants.
Associate Director John Mulatya said:
Our deep understanding and knowledge of the local market and data centre project experience has enabled IX Africa to achieve their business case and to deliver their project in line with timelines committed to their end users.
Paving the way for digital transformation in Kenya
IX Africa is committed to delivery of the project in line with IFC’s Green Building Standards on its developments while meeting the demand of the hyperscale cloud community, and it is dedicated to the goals of sustainability.
The client has plans to install a solar PV of 520KV tapping into the Nairobi’s geographical location along the equator that provides an opportunity to harness solar energy.
The project delivery strategy has adopted ‘Keep It Africa’ objectives, which are to reduce embodied carbon in the supply chain by prioritising the use of local materials and products, employing a local workforce and reducing stockpiling wherever possible.
The successful use of modularised mechanical, electrical, and plumbing technologies during the project are helping to pave the way for the construction industry in Kenya, allowing fast, accurate construction while also helping to minimise wastage.
