Vantage Data Centers has announced plans for a £500 million, 48MW campus based in North Acton, London. The data centre will cover 430,000 square feet, comprised of two 24MW buildings when completed. The first of these will be launched in 2024.
While Vantage Data Centers opened a corporate office in London in 2021, the North Acton facility will be the company’s first data centre in the city. Investing in infrastructure in London answers the growing demand from customers in the area.
Antoine Boniface, President for EMEA Vantage Data Centers, said: “Vantage has experienced rapid growth over the past three years as we continue developing state-of-the-art data centre campuses across EMEA.”
The London market, one of the largest in Western Europe, is expected to grow at a CAGR of 2.86% until 2027. This growth is attributed to the adoption of new technologies including 5G networks, AI, IoT, and big data analytics.
Hyperscale data centres currently account for 48% of the London market, which is projected to grow to 66% by 2027.
“With London being one of the largest data centre markets in the world, this expansion further solidifies Vantage’s role at the forefront of the digital infrastructure revolution. With relatively little inventory available in London and requirements on the rise, we are ideally positioned to deliver for our customers,” added Boniface.
Supporting data centre industry activity in the city, the Greater London Authority recently announced that it would change the application process for data centre development. This regulatory change is intended to ease the friction between developers and residents concerned with the power crisis, providing better electricity management regulations.
“The continuing demand for data centers in London offers a prime opportunity for Vantage Data Centers to make its entrance into the highly-coveted market,” said Tim Kay, Deputy Director for Technology at the Department for International Trade in London.
While the new data centre campus called LHR1 is company’s first in London, it is not their first foray into the UK market. The data centre provider recently announced the completion of phase one for its second 40MW data centre in Cardiff, Wales.
“The significant investment Vantage is making in Wales is transforming the area into one of Europe’s leading data center hubs and a top cloud region in the UK,” said Justin Jenkins, Vantage Data Centers’ Chief Operating Officer for Europe
The Welsh data centre campus will span 46 acres, including three data centres totaling 148MW capacity.
“This is great news for the local economy as the added capacity will attract more global companies to the region, ensuring additional work for hundreds of local contractors on site and creating new permanent job opportunities,” added Jenkins.
The campus operates entirely on renewable energy with a low power usage effectiveness (PUE), which Vantage attributes to its energy-efficient indirect evaporative free cooling system.
