Under the terms of the agreement, DPA SA will supply 12MW of renewable solar energy for Africa Data Centres facilities in South Africa.

"Through this agreement, our customers will benefit from a sustainable data centre," says Tesh Durvasula, CEO of Africa Data Centres.

As the demand for data continues to soar, the data centre industry is expanding rapidly, he adds.

"However, while data centres are the foundation of the digital transformation process in Africa, they require reliable, cost-effective and preferably green power to operate," Durvasula says. "Our partnership with DPA will also help reduce our reliance on the strained South African national grid, enabling us to play our part in alleviating the country's current energy challenges."

Energy will be delivered to Africa Data Centres' facilities partly from the solar farm DPA is developing near Bloemfontein to deliver the first 12MW required for the ADC data centres.

Research reveals that the global data centre market was valued at USD$187.35-billion in 2020 and is projected to reach USD$517.17-billion by 2030, registering a CAGR of 10.5% from 2021 to 2030.

In addition, most estimates claim data centres are responsible for as much as 2% of the world's energy consumption, which is approximately the same as the aviation industry.

According to the duo, it cannot be denied that tremendous strides have been made towards carbon neutrality; however, designing, developing and operating sustainable facilities is still one of the most significant challenges faced by:
  • developers
  • co-location operators
  • global cloud computing providers, and
  • hyperscalers.

According to Durvasula, "Each year, the data centre industry must try to accommodate two fundamental goals. Firstly, it must meet the demand for the capacity needed to support the ever-increasing range of high-performance computing, digital services, edge environments and connected devices. Secondly, it must find ways to lower energy usage and reduce its universal impact resources that are already stretched to the limit."

Africa Data Centres itself has a target to power all its data centres with clean, zero-carbon sources of energy.

Durvasula adds, "This new deal will provide over 30% of our South African data centres with renewable energy, a great stride forward in our aim to reach carbon neutrality."

The data centre giant, as the largest pan-African network of interconnected data centre facilities, is at the vanguard of sustainable change and has always been committed to helping South African companies reduce their reliance on the already strained power supply.

Durvasula says, "By signing this latest PPA, we will reach our second milestone towards carbon neutrality. Our first milestone was to optimise our roof space with solar, and this latest deal will see us utilising the recently approved wheeling mechanism within South Africa's municipalities."

DPA is a pan-African renewable energy company with critical operations in South Africa, Kenya and Zimbabwe whose vision is to power Africa to a brighter future.

Norman Moyo, CEO of DPA, says, "Our customers are looking for cost-effective and efficient ways of meeting their green targets and reducing energy costs for their businesses in a climate of increased power shortages. We are excited to embark on this milestone project with Africa Data Centres as it will demonstrate our innovation in deploying renewable energy solutions."

By creating a 50:50 Joint Venture between DPA and EDF in South Africa via DPA Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd, EDF intends to develop hybrid energy solutions for clients across Africa.

Valérie Levkov, senior VP of Africa and Middle East at EDF, adds, "This agreement with Africa Data Centres re-affirms EDF's commitment to providing low carbon solutions for commercial and industrial clients in Africa, and we are very pleased to be a part of this initiative."

"By working together, the two companies are also supporting several of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. For example, to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all and to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable," says Levkov.

"This partnership also creates sustainable consumption and production patterns and, most significantly, takes urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts," concludes Levkov.

For more information, visit www.africadatacentres.com. You can also follow Africa Data Centres on Facebook or on Twitter.