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Macquarie Telecom Group (ASX: MAQ) is expanding its data centre operations in Sydney with a $78 million-plus facility that it says will create a Sovereign Cyber Security Centre of Excellence for Australia.
Set to be the largest development to be undertaken by its Macquarie Data Centres subsidiary, the new facility will more than double the load capacity of the company's existing operations, the IC3 East facility, at the Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus in Sydney.
The company says it will also significantly enhance the cybersecurity infrastructure and capabilities of NSW.
The planned Intellicentre 3 Super West data centre is positioned to meet the data storage needs of corporates, government and multinationals. Once fully operational, Macquarie Telecom says it will also help tackle the local skills shortage the sector is currently facing.
"This data centre will attract new investment into Australia from multinationals looking to expand in the Asia Pacific region," says Macquarie Telecom's David Tudehope.
"The NSW digital economy is rapidly growing, and this project will create world-class infrastructure and valuable long-term jobs in the digital and cyber security sector."
A report by industry development group AustCyber found in 2018 that the sector would need 18,000 new workers in Australia by 2023.
The Intellicentre 3 Super West data centre is expected to create more than 1200 jobs in construction, engineering and cybersecurity. The project expected to be completed in the second half of calendar 2023 pending planning approvals.
The data centre will have a 32-megawatt IT load facility, which will boost the total IT load of the Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus to 50 megawatts. It is designed to seamlessly interconnect with the existing IC3 East facility.
"This global scale data centre will be one of the most certified facilities in the region," says Macquarie Data Centres group executive David Hirst.
"Data is growing exponentially, and we have demonstrated time and time again our ability to deliver infrastructure to meet that growth. Our data centres are sovereign, secure and certified to manage Australia's most important data and drive the digital economy."
As Australia's home of the Sovereign Cyber Security Centre of Excellence, the Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus will bring together leading-edge physical and virtual infrastructure designed to monitor and manage cybersecurity events.
Macquarie Telecom says it will offer a 'truly Australian sovereign solution to the growing cyber security threats'.
Plans for the Sydney expansion follow the completion by Macquarie Telecom of its IC5 Bunker facility in Canberra and the first stage IC3 East facility at Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus.
Together, these represent an investment of $100 million which the company says brought more than 1,600 jobs to Sydney and Canberra during the pandemic.
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Business News Australia
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