Nasdaq-listed data centre operator Equinix has acquired land in Johannesburg and Cape Town valued at R890-million as part of a R7.5-billion investment push that will add 160MW of new data centre capacity in South Africa, signalling the company’s intent to capitalise on accelerating demand driven by artificial intelligence and cloud adoption across the continent.
The company, which opened its first South African facility in Johannesburg in 2024, has secured 327 000m² of land across the two cities. According to Sandile Dube, managing director for South Africa, all investments are being funded from Equinix’s own balance sheet, a model the company intends to maintain for future expansions in the country. The planned 160MW of new capacity comes on top of 172MW already under construction, substantially expanding the company’s local footprint.
Equinix’s entry into Africa came through its US$320-million acquisition of Nigeria’s MainOne Cable Co. The company began building its first Johannesburg facility—a US$160-million data centre in Isando on the East Rand—in 2022. That facility, designated JN1, opened in 2024 with 1 860m² of rack space and 4MW of IT load. The Cape Town land acquisition represents a new geographic front for Equinix in South Africa, where operations had previously been concentrated in Gauteng.
The investment places Equinix among a growing list of global technology firms expanding their data centre presence in South Africa. Microsoft and Amazon Web Services have committed substantial resources to cloud and AI infrastructure in the country. Vantage Data Centers is developing a campus in Johannesburg with an eventual capacity of 80MW, while Africa Data Centres, NTT Data and Teraco—South Africa’s largest data centre operator—are also pursuing expansion projects.
South Africa accounts for approximately three-quarters of Africa’s total data centre capacity. However, according to data from BloombergNEF, the continent as a whole hosts just 409MW of operational capacity, representing less than 1% of the global total. Research firm Arizton Advisory & Intelligence projects the market will grow from about US$2.6-billion in 2025 to more than US$5-billion by 2031.
In February, finance minister Enoch Godongwana designated data centres as critical infrastructure in his budget speech, placing them on the same footing as electricity, ports and transport networks. Dube described the designation as recognition that digital infrastructure had become as fundamental as traditional utilities.
Equinix also maintains operations in West Africa through MainOne. The company is not yet present in East Africa but has indicated it would consider further continental expansion based on the performance of its current investments. Dube noted that major hyperscalers were targeting not only the South African market but the broader African opportunity.