Equinix, the global data center operator that acquired Nigeria’s MainOne, is expanding into West Africa with the unveiling of a new $22 million data center in Lagos, the company’s first newly constructed facility on the continent.
The data center, known as LG3, is expected to be operational by the first quarter of 2026 and is aimed at both local and foreign enterprises wishing to expand in a country with strong digital infrastructure.
The LG3 initiative is the first stage in Equinix’s $100 million investment strategy for Africa over the next two years, which aims to alter the continent’s digital landscape, TechCabal reported.
Lagos, with over 18 million active internet subscribers and the biggest concentration of enterprise customers, fintechs, banks, and telecom providers in Nigeria, is an ideal site for this expansion.
The commercial city also acts as a landing site for several subsea cable systems, which improves its worldwide connection and solidifies its position as a digital hub.
Projections also show that the data center market in Africa is set to climb to over $684 million by 2030, with Lagos having over 30% of the market share.
“As Lagos emerges at the crossroads of talent, innovation, and global connectivity, this facility is accelerating access to technologies like cloud, AI, and the next wave of startups,” said Wole Abu, Managing Director for West Africa at Equinix
The new data center will incorporate Equinix Fabric, a solution that allows enterprises to link their physical and virtual infrastructure to a global ecosystem of cloud service providers spread across more than 270 Equinix data centers worldwide.
LG3 is part of a larger development plan that includes a new data center in Port Harcourt, PR1, which would act as the first landing station for Meta’s 2Africa subsea cable outside of Lagos, thereby decentralizing Nigeria’s internet capacity.
Equinix acquired MainOne for $320 million in April 2022, gaining access to data centers in Nigeria, Ghana, and Côte d’Ivoire.
The company also has a 7,000-kilometer submarine cable system connecting Nigeria to Portugal and over 1,200 kilometers of terrestrial fiber across southern Nigeria.
Equinix’s platform serves over 4,000 clients globally and provides over 64,000 interconnections, with over 220 hyperscaler on-ramps in 45 metros and thousands of partners, and these capabilities are now available in West Africa.
“With the opening of our newest data centre in Lagos, Equinix is proud to invest in this dynamic region, supporting our customers’ growth with world-class data centres that power everything from banking and education to emergency services and commerce,” Aslıhan Güreşcier, Vice President, EMEA Growth & Emerging Markets at Equinix, said.
Equinix South African Push
Equinix’s expansion into West Africa follows its recent investment in South Africa, where the company intends to build a $160 million data center in Johannesburg.
A report by Bloomberg showed that the facility was projected to be operational by mid-2024, serving large organizations, banks, media companies, and hyperscalers.
The Johannesburg project complements Equinix’s broader African strategy, which aims to leverage Africa’s growing internet usage and digital economy.
