US-listed data centre operator Equinix doubles down on South Africa

Equinix is planning to build 160MW of additional data centre capacity in South Africa as part of a R7.5-billion investment, having acquired 327,000m² of land in Johannesburg and Cape Town for R890-million. This expands on the 172MW already under construction. The company entered Africa via its acquisition of Nigeria's MainOne and opened its first Johannesburg facility in 2024. South Africa dominates African data centre capacity and the market is projected to grow from $2.6-billion in 2025 to over $5-billion by 2031, with Microsoft, AWS, Vantage, and others also investing heavily in the region.