US-based global interconnection and data centre company Equinix has completed the acquisition of Australian data centre provider Metronode.
The acquisition expands Equinix’ operations to 15 business exchange data centres nationwide, including in Sydney and Melbourne, and provides a presence in four new markets – Perth, Canberra, Adelaide and Brisbane.
Equinix says its expanded platform will provide significant opportunities for Australian organisations to continue their digital transformation, and move their IT infrastructure, applications and services closer to the digital edge in proximity to global customers and partners.
And Equinix cites new joint research from Microsoft and IDC that digital transformation could add as much as A$45 billion (approximately US$35 billion) to Australia's gross domestic product by 2021.
{loadposition peter}Closure of the Metronode deal follows an agreement Equinix made with the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan in December 2017 to acquire all the equity interests in the Metronode group of companies in an all-cash transaction for A$1.035 billion, or approximately US$804 million.
Equinix says the Metronode assets add more than 860,000 square feet (80,000 square metres) of land, 90% of which is owned, to the global portfolio of Equinix, including approximately 215,000 square feet (20,000 square metres) of gross colocation space in Australia.
The acquisition adds to Platform Equinix two data centres in Melbourne, and three in greater Sydney, including one in Illawarra, which Equinix says meets customer demand for dual sites in each metro for redundancy and to host its data “in network-rich, hyperscale-ready” facilities. It also adds two data centres to the Equinix portfolio in Perth, and one in each of Canberra, Adelaide and Brisbane.
The Metronode site in Perth will become the landing station for the new Vocus Australia Singapore Cable, which Equinix says, with the existing submarine cable deployments in Sydney, will improve performance with lower latency and increased flexibility for customers across Australia.
Jeremy Deutsch, managing director, Equinix Australia, said Equinix was committed to matching the growth of its customers and meeting their demands for digital transformation and innovation.
“This acquisition expands our national footprint and will enable us to help our customers interconnect at the digital edge throughout Australia. We are thrilled to already see very strong demand from our existing customers and potential new customers, each expressing their desire to expand into the enlarged platform Equinix across Australia.”
Samuel Lee, president of Equinix Asia-Pacific, said the acquisition of Metronode ensures the company will continue to strengthen its “leadership position in the Asia-Pacific region and support our ongoing global expansion while further enabling Australia’s digital economy”.