Equinix expands Melbourne footprint with fourth data centre worth $116 million
Equinix has opened a new International Business ExchangeTM (IBX) data center in Melbourne, Australia.
The new data center is the fourth facility for the company in the Melbourne area.
Known as ME2, Equinix says the new facility supports the growing demand for digital transformation globally, as well as Melbourne's smart city development and the interconnection needs of local customers.
The ME2 IBX is located in Melbourne's Fishermans Bend region, Australia's largest urban renewal project, which is forecast to be home to approximately 80,000 residents and provide employment for up to 80,000 people by 2050. It is located adjacent to the ME1 IBX with a secure pedestrian footbridge between the buildings.
Equinix says organisations operating at the ME2 IBX can leverage the ecosystem of approximately 10,000 businesses currently operating on Platform Equinix globally. The facility is expected to play a key role in supporting Melbournes smart city development.
A new report from Oracle and ESI ThoughtLab recognised Melbourne as the sixth most advanced smart city in the world.
"The value of smart cities has become increasingly recognised and is now a key priority for markets across the Asia-Pacific region as they continue to grow their digital economies," says Jeremy Deutsch, president, Equinix Asia-Pacific.
"Equinix is dedicated to support this development by connecting people, businesses and industry so they can better interconnect at the digital edge. Our investment in the Australian market reflects our commitment to our customers as they continue their digital transformation journeys," he says.
The A$116 million facility includes more than 29,300 square feet (2,730 square metres) of colocation space. Once fully built out, the facility will include more than 88,000 square feet (8,190 square metres) of colocation space.
The city of Melbourne is increasingly experiencing digital transformation and is predicted to have a digital economy worth approximately A$51billion 2020. Equinix's Melbourne data center campus enables companies to digitise their businesses by embracing cloud applications from more than 80 Cloud and IT service providers.
Since entering Melbourne in 2015, Equinix has built a mature ecosystem with more than 220 customers across multiple industries. The network effect of this growth creates increased need for further data center capacity to support businesses increasing migration towards the digital edge.
Guy Danskine, managing director, Equinix Australia, says by capitalising on the thriving economy, Equinix is continuing to expand its national footprint to meet the rising demand for interconnection.
In 2019, Equinix launched its eighth Sydney data center, SY5, and completed expansion of its second Perth facility, PE2. With the opening of ME2, Equinix has a national footprint of 17 data centers across Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Canberra, Adelaide and Brisbane, with four in Melbourne.
"Five years ago, we entered the Melbourne market with our ME1 facility. In that short time, we now have four sites in two distinct campus locations across the city, containing a flourishing ecosystem that enables secure, high-speed, low-latency connections for our customers and partners," says Danskine.
"This new IBX demonstrates our continued commitment to the Victorian and Australian digital economies, creating a place where our customers and partners can interconnect across our national footprint of 17 highly connected data centers."
As the only location in Victoria with direct access to Victoria Internet Exchange and the Australia Singapore Cable (ASC), Equinix's Melbourne campus offers connectivity to more than 50 network service providers.
