West Africa open access submarine cable company MainOne has commenced construction work on a $25 million data centre in Lagos.

The Tier-III MainOne data centre, which is set to be the largest of its kind in West Africa at 1 500 square metres with a 600-rack capacity, has had its sod-turning ceremony at the company’s cable
landing station (CLS) in the Lekki Peninsula, Lagos.

Speaking on the project, Funke Opeke, chief executive officer of MainOne said, “We are delighted with this project because of the immense benefits it will provide our customers. Internet penetration has been a huge issue in Nigeria especially to the hinterland.

“The new data centre will leverage on MainOne’s network which is peered with leading operators and internet exchanges worldwide to provide global reach to our customers across all locations,” she said.

She expressed delight at the performance of the company’s submarine cable since inception in 2010.

“We have not experienced any major outages since operation began three years ago.”

She attributed this to a team of dedicated professional staff.

“In an investment of this magnitude, you cannot afford to cut corners. We deploy the state of the art monitoring technology device, using GPS surveillance equipment round the clock on our undersea cable. We cannot afford to fail our clients,” Opeke stated.

The MainOne executive added that the data centre, which is expected to be completed in the second quarter of next year, will pave way for the establishment of additional data centres and point of presence (POP) facilities across Nigeria and other West African nations.

Folu Aderibigbe, MainOne chief sales and marketing officer, said the data centre was proof of the company’s commitment to enhance infrastructure within its primary markets.

“The new MainOne data centre is expected to transform West Africa into a digital economy. The project will also aid reduction of information technology costs and risks while enhancing business efficiency and profitability,” Aderibigbe said.