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THURSDAY | MAY 8, 2025

Demand for data centre space in Malaysia outstrips supply

PETALING JAYA: Asean must build on its shared strengths and deepen partnerships on climate action across all sectors following the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Agreement and its sweeping tariff plans. Natural Resources and Environ mental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad ( pic ) said Malaysia is ready to collaborate, share lessons, and take the lead where possible. “No country can face the climate crisis alone. But together, Asean can lead. We have natural resources, growing markets, young popu lations, and a shared destiny. “We must build on our common Malaysian and Cambodian chambers sign pact to enhance trade ties PETALING JAYA: The Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) and Cambodia Chamber of Com merce (CCC) have launched a joint initiative to enhance economic cooperation and increase bilateral trade. The two chambers signed a memorandum of understanding on Tuesday to formalise their colla boration, according to a statement from CCC, Bernama reported. The May 6 signing ceremony was held at the headquarters of the CCC. ACCCIM president Datuk Ng Yih Pyng said the delegation aimed to partner with its Cambodian coun terpart to explore new economic opportunities in the kingdom. “The main objective of the visit is to explore potential cooperation and promote sustainable events in Asean.” The MoU sets out a framework for promoting economic ties and encouraging trade and investment between both countries. Trade between Malaysia and Cambodia reached about RM3.7 billion in 2024. Malaysia’s key exports to Cam bodia include petroleum products, chemicals, textiles, apparel, foot wear, metals and non-metallic mineral products. Cambodian officials pointed to the country’s young and energetic workforce, a productive invest-ment climate, and supportive government policies as key advantages. “There is a close economic relationship between Cambodia and Malaysia, strong trade demand, and Malaysian investment in key sectors,” said CCC vice-president Sok Piseth, according to the state ment. Ng and Piseth signed the MoU on behalf of their respective chambers.

Ű BY HAYATUN RAZAK sunbiz@thesubdaily.com

strong. It’s just that they’re going to look elsewhere to expand. Johor seems to be the next choice because of its proximity. It’s just incredible. The number of new data centres in Johor is impressive.” Cheam highlighted Malaysia’s advantage of hosting three major digital ecosystems – data centres, artificial intelligence, and semicon ductors – which strengthens the country’s position in the regional technology landscape. “We are one of the few countries in the world with all three tech ecosystems in one place. That positions us well to deploy digital infrastructure and support the rapid growth of the region’s digital economy. It’s a very positive message for Malaysia.” Equinix has completed the second phase of its KL1 data centre here. The latest phase added 450 cabinets to the facility to meet the demand for digital infrastructure in Malaysia. “Completing KL1’s second phase within the first year of our operations in Malaysia signals our deep commitment to helping the nation become a strategic location in the region’s digital economy,” Cheam said. Since launching its Cyberjaya operations in 2024, Equinix has secured global and local customers across diverse sectors, including cloud and IT services, content and digital media, enterprises, and network providers. Equinix has interconnected its Malaysian data centres – KL1 in Kuala Lumpur and JH1 in Johor – with its existing data center campus in Singapore via Equinix Fabric.

o Equinix managing director here points to country’s advantage of hosting three major digital ecosystems – data hubs, artificial intelligence and semiconductors

CYBERJAYA: The demand for data centre space in Malaysia is far outpacing supply, particularly in Johor, according to Equinix, Inc, a global digital infrastructure com pany, which currently operates two data centres in the country. Equinix Malaysia managing director Cheam Tat Inn said its Johor data centre rack space was fully taken up just a month after its launch. “In Johor, just one month after we launched, the racks were completely full. The demand right now far exceeds what the industry can offer. And our second phase of KL1 is already filling up. Customers are already moving in,” he told reporters during a media tour of Equinix’s KL1 International Business Exchange data centre here yesterday. Cheam said much of the demand comes from smaller

Cheam said Equinix is positive about the outlook of Malaysia’s data centre industry. “Malaysia is the fastest growing in the Asean region for new data centres or the data centre industry.” The key reason, he said, is the growing digital economy in Asean which drives the need for supporting digital infrastructure across the region. “Singapore is at a stage where I don’t think they can expand anymore in terms of physical capacity. But the demand for digital infrastructure in Singapore is still

deployments rather than large scale cloud infrastructure. “We get inquiries in Johor almost every other week. If there’s no space, we try to fit them into KL. We’ll ask if they would consider KL instead, because here, we still have availability. Some agree because they need the facility, but others insist on Johor due to its proximity to Singapore. There are customers who only want to be very close to Singapore.” According to him, the Johor facility is fully taken up, while Kuala Lumpur is about 90% occupied.

Equinix Malaysia’s facility in Cyberjaya. Cheam says the growing digital economy in Asean is driving the need for supporting digital infrastructure across the region. With future expansions into Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand, Equinix aims to facilitate seamless business exchanges and enable customers to deploy multisite, latency-sensitive work loads across Asean. Asean urged to strengthen climate partnerships amid global uncertainty

matching financial infrastructure. “Private capital must be mobilised, derisked, and directed towards sustainable investments. Blended finance, green bonds, sustainability linked loans, and catalytic funds must be scaled up,” he said. Nik Nazmi noted that Malaysia has introduced the green sukuk and is actively exploring innovative financing mechanisms to encourage private sector participation. According to the Asian Development Bank, Asean will require an estimated US$210 billion (RM888.3 billion) annually until 2030 to support climate-aligned infra structure. – Bernama

He said Malaysia’s National Energy Transition Roadmap is projected to unlock investments of RM1.85 trillion by 2050, offering abundant oppor tunities for local entrepreneurs, workforce upskilling and an expanded role for women and youth in the clean energy sector. Nik Nazmi called on development banks, multilateral institutions, and the private sector to help build a financial ecosystem that supports sustainability. He said that green ambitions such as the Asean Power Grid infra structure initiative aimed at supporting the region’s energy tran sition to renewable energy, require

ment to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, with a pledge to peak emissions by 2030 and reduce the intensity of emissions per unit of gross domestic pro duct by 45% com pared to 2005 levels. Malaysia, Nik Nazmi said, views the green

strengths and deepen our partnerships - across governments, businesses, civil society, and academia,” he said in a pre-recorded keynote address at the Financing Asia’s Tran sition Conference held in Singapore yesterday. While Malaysia re mains committed to

transition as an economic stimulus, particularly in areas such as energy efficiency, solar photovoltaic and electric vehicle manufacturing, green hydrogen and nature-based solutions.

resolving the tariff issue through bilateral and regional negotiations, Nik Nazmi said the climate cooperation agenda must progress in tandem. He reiterated Malaysia’s commit