Construction Of East Africa’s Largest Data Centre Initiated By Airtel Kenya
Airtel:
Expected to be the largest data centre in East Africa, the ‘Nxtra by Airtel’ Data Centre is due for construction at the Tatu City Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Kiambu County, central Kenya. The developer, Nxtra, is a full subsidiary of Airtel Africa and expects to invest about US $ 150 million (M) (about ksh 19,350 M at current exchange rates) in the project expected to be complete and operational by Q1 2027, it was announced at the site during the ground breaking ceremony on September 9th, 2025.
Some of the data centre’s (it is designed to meet the latest infrastructure requirement for cloud and AI services) salient feature include it being a purpose built facility that is modular and composable and with a floor loading of 2100kg/M2; reliable power and cooling with geo-redundant risers; multi-level physical and electronic levels (7 layers) features et al; scalability including 44MW of total power, ground & total upper floors & over 30 KW/rack power density and high capacity connectivity backbone to local and global internet access and availability of bandwidth on demand et al.
Other of the Data Centre’s features include450,000Ft2; 2 main building with ground and two other floors; over 4200 racks; design PuE less than 1.4; load bearing /rack of up to 2000 kg/M2; carrier neutral network; over 3 & diverse fibre paths and ASHRAE conditioning.
With a planned power capacity of 44 megawatts (MW) as aforementioned, it will house new generation of servers as well as high-density GPU-ready racks with the 99.999 per cent uptime, feature multiple redundant fiber paths, and incorporate advanced security systems, providing unmatched reliability and scalability for hyper-scalers, enterprises, and governments.
Meanwhile, Nxtra holds an African vision to also develop data centres in Nigeria, Tanzania, DRC Conga and Uganda which will cover over 2 million Ft2 of data centre building; over 200 MW total power; over 12000 racks in 10 physical data centres & 48 edge data centres. The PuE design will be less than 1.4 and the power density will be over 30KW per rack.
Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of ICT, Hon. William Kabogo, lauded launch of the Data Centre at the ceremony, noting that the facility aligns perfectly with the government’s digital agenda, which seeks to expand broadband connectivity, spur innovation, and enable the digital economy to flourish.
“The scale and quality of this facility will firmly place Kenya on the map as a trusted host for global and regional digital infrastructure. Above all it is a reflection of the confidence in Kenya’s economy, policies and our vision for a digitally enabled society,” he affirmed.
The groundbreaking marks a major milestone in Airtel Africa’s strategy to strengthen the continent’s digital backbone, democratize cloud services and support the exponential growth of data services across Africa.
At the event Nxtra Africa CEO, Yashnath Issur termed this investment part of Airtel group’s long-term commitment to Africa’s digital future.
“By building specialized data center capacity that meets long term digital growth requirement in main markets, we are positioning Nxtra Africa as the Go- To- partner for cloud and AI workload hosting with a view to power businesses including SMEs, supports governments, and unlocks new opportunities for communities across the region. Nxtra by Airtel is being built to the highest global standards, ensuring reliability, scalability, and energy efficiency. Beyond capacity, our focus is on sustainability and resilience, enabling customers to fully leverage next-generation technologies in a secure environment,” added Yashnath Issur.
Essentially, the data centre will be developed in two phases of 22MW each, reaching a total site capacity of 44MW upon completion and is expected to be ready for service in the first quarter of 2027. Construction is set to create hundreds of direct and indirect jobs, with additional permanent technical and operational roles once the facility becomes operational. In addition, Nxtra will work with local suppliers and contractors, injecting millions into the Kenyan economy, supporting the growth of the country’s technology ecosystem and enabling Kenyan businesses to compete on a global scale.
Ashish Malhotra, Airtel Kenya MD, described the Nxtra Data Center project as a major milestone for Kenya’s digital economy. “This facility goes beyond infrastructure. It reinforces Kenya’s continuing leadership in Africa’s digital revolution by improving data sovereignty, security, and efficiency. Once operational, it will attract global tech players, create jobs, lower the cost of digital services, and make it easier for Kenyan companies to grow, while also strengthening Kenya’s position as a regional hub for technology (especially IT & digital) and innovation. We also believe it will create a new portfolio of services that will maximize the benefits of AI and cloud,” Malhotra averred.
For Steve Jenkins of Rendevour (the Tatu City developers) the construction of the data centre will be a major milestone for both Tatu City and Airtel Kenya. “For over 10 years, we’ve realized a very big scale of nvestments and we’ve developed over 120km of secure fiber optic. We acknowledge and appreciate this as secure and scalable long-term investment,” observed Jenkins. According to him, the City integrates green energy with traditional energy sources but everyday works to promote more green energy. By 2019, the City had developed 1 MW of solar energy and now uses 5MW of solar energy a development that has enabled the City to be 95 per cent dependent on green energy.
“Today, Tatu City is a thriving ecosystem that hosts over 100 firms in sectors such as manufacturing, fast moving consumer goods (FMCGs), residential dwellings, healthcare facilities and schools et al. Over 25,000 persons work here and we’ve over 600 students learning here and we’ve about 4500 homes already,” Jenkins affirmed. According to him the Data center will create more jobs & opportunities and improve people’s skills.
“This will be a tough project seeing that investments are never easy. This and other projects at the City will confirm research findings indicative of the fact that 40 per cent of the global workforce shall emanate from Africa by 2099 or end of this century,” he added.
As one of the 14 operations that Airtel Africa runs in Africa since November 2010 following the acquisition of Zain by Bharti Airtel, earlier in June of the same year, Airtel Kenya is notably one of the fastest growing mobile services providers in Kenya. It is dedicated to delivering unparalleled connectivity and empowering experiences to its valued customers across the nation.
It has established itself as a leading telecommunications brand, offering a wide range of services including mobile voice, data, SMS, enterprise solutions and mobile money services with its robust network infrastructure ensuring seamless connectivity and allowing customers to stay connected with their loved ones. It also affords clientele access to information, and exploration of endless possibilities while also giving them a reason to imagine.
Meanwhile, Airtel Africa is a leading provider of telecommunications and mobile money services, with a presence in 14 countries in Africa, primarily in East Africa and Central and West Africa.
Fundamentally, it offers an integrated suite of telecommunications solutions to its subscribers, including mobile voice and data services as well as mobile money services, both nationally and internationally. The Group aims to continue providing a simple and intuitive customer experience through streamlined customer journeys.
