Dubai firm builds data center in West Java

Dubai-based firm Edgnex plans to invest $2.3 billion (about Rp 37 trillion) to build a large-scale data center on 12 hectares of land in the Cikarang Industrial Zone in West Java, with the first phase of the project expected to be completed in 2026 and last overall until 2028.The Minister of Communications and Digital sees the investment as a positive sign of increased global investor confidence in Indonesia's digital ecosystem, with data centers being the core infrastructure for the country's digital transformation. The investment is expected to go beyond scale and bring added value to society, including support for the digitization of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as the application of artificial intelligence in agriculture, fisheries and healthcare. National data center capacity was 180 MW at the beginning of the government's tenure, and has now been boosted to 290 MW. Malaysia's data center capacity is around 400 MW, but Indonesia is growing rapidly and national capacity is expected to jump to 900 MW by the end of 2025. demand for data centers in Indonesia is expected to reach between 1.5 and 2 gigawatts (GW) over the next two years, and if the target is achieved, Indonesia is expected to become a major digital data hub in Southeast Asia if the target is achieved. The Ministry of Communications and Digital Technology (MCDT) has previously inaugurated the Southeast Asia Advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) Data Center in Sibintong, built by local Indonesian company DCI Indonesia, demonstrating that local companies also have high capacity and need continued support. The Ministry of Communications and Digital is open to dialog and cooperation in order to uphold the national interest in building an inclusive and sustainable digital infrastructure.