Group to invest $240m in Lagos data center with expansion from 1.5 to 24 megawatts

Open Access Data Centers (OADC), a subsidiary of WIOCC Group is set to invest a $240 million fund to expand its data center in Lekki, Lagos. The plan is part of a broader $500 million investment plan announced in 2021 to develop data centre infrastructure across Africa.

The move, as part of its expansion plans, will upgrade the data centre to 24 megawatts by 2027 and serve as the landing station for Google’s Equiano subsea cable in Nigeria. The centre currently operates about 1.5 megawatts (MW) of its planned capacity following its operational launch two months ago.

OADC said the project will be initiated in two stages where the first 12 MW would be completed within 18 months adding that projects like this typically take more than two years due to the complexity of design and execution.

The CEO, Ayotunde Coker, highlighted that the company remained focused on its commitment to injecting investments in Nigeria and other parts of Africa. He explained that the project will be partnered by international finance partners, including the International Finance Corporation and Proparco, a development finance institution and subsidiary of the Agence Française de Développement Group.

“One-megawatt capacity of a data centre costs about $10 million. We are building 24 megawatts, which is about $240 million – a huge investment,” he said.

Coker said that the financing is structured as a sustainability-linked debt, with the pricing tied to WIOCC’s pledge to improve the energy efficiency of its data centres and secure EDGE green building certification for them.

“It’s a massive investment with huge capital requirements. We were among those who announced sustainability-linked financing. Meeting sustainability targets allows us to access additional funding, which keeps us accountable,” he expressed.

Coker said OADC’s Lagos facility is critical to Nigeria’s digital infrastructure while supporting cloud services, content delivery, and enterprise connectivity. 

In addition, the facility will initially connect to EKDC’s dedicated transmission line, feeding into OADC’s power farm. As the campus scales, a second transmission link from the HR substation will be added, ensuring redundancy and reliability. 

OADC is a Tier III-certified facility designed with a 33,000-volt power supply and an 11kV distribution network. The firm aims to become a data centre hub for West Africa and ensure dedicated transformers and power distribution rooms per phase. Notably, the firm operates data centres across Africa.

Similar Read: Google opens 1st African Cloud office in Johannesburg.

Future data center expansion

On future outlook, the company pointed out that further expansion in Nigeria and other African markets such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa are in consideration.

According to Coker, OADC is positioning itself as a key player in Africa’s growing data centre market, the goal of which is driven by increasing demand for cloud computing, AI workloads, and improved internet access.

“The company has data centres in operation and development in Lagos, Nigeria; Kinasha, DRC; and four in South Africa across Johannesburg, Durban, and Cape Town,” he stated.

A stumbling block for the firm’s hyper-scale data centre operation has been the ability to secure reliable power. To address this challenge, the CEO explained that OADC has developed a multi-faceted energy strategy to address this challenge by integrating traditional and renewable energy sources for long-term sustainability.

The company also plans to integrate renewable energy. Coker said that as much as the on-site solar generation is limited due to space constraints, OADC is evaluating power-wheeling options to source hydroelectric and solar power from external locations.

“This model, already implemented in South Africa, could help enhance the facility’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) credentials,” he added.

OADC is also exploring Independent Power Producer (IPP) solutions using gas-based energy, leveraging Nigeria’s abundant gas resources to reduce reliance on diesel generators.

WIOCC was established in 2008 as the largest investor in the EASSy submarine cable system and has since grown into a leading provider of Africa’s wholesale hyperscale digital infrastructure. 

Open Access Data Centers (OADC) was launched in 2021 and is now Africa’s fastest-growing data centre company. Building on this success, the Group has grown with the addition of Open Access Technical Services, Open Access Fabric, and Open Access Metro, further enhancing its capabilities and service offerings across Africa.