Globe on track to open Philippines biggest data center

MANILA, Philippines — Telco-to-tech provider Globe Telecom Inc. is nearing completion of the largest data center in the Philippines, as it plans to open the facility by the second quarter of 2025.

Globe’s data center builder ST Telemedia Global Data Centers (STT GDC) Philippines yesterday said it is making progress in the construction of STT Fairview.

STT GDC Philippines president and CEO Carlo Malana said the data center should be ready for service by the second quarter of next year.

In its entirety, STT Fairview would offer a total capacity of 124 megawatts, making it the biggest data center in the country. STT GDC Philippines has allocated at least $1 billion in putting up the project, confident that the investment would pay dividends in the long run.

“We remain committed to delivering our project timelines. Last year, we projected STT Fairview would be ready in the first part of 2025, and we are on schedule to deliver the initial capacity by the second quarter of 2025,” Malana said.

Once STT Fairview is completed, it is expected to house some of the requirements for artificial intelligence (AI) in the Philippines.

Citing a forecast from the Department of Trade and Industry, STT GDC Philippines said AI may contribute as much as 12 percent, or around $92 billion, to the economy by 2030.

Further, AI’s market size is projected to expand by an average of 29 percent every year, reaching $3.5 billion by 2030, from $772 million currently.

Given this, Malana said STT GDC Philippines wants to maximize its future capacity to convince some of the biggest tech giants to locate here. The company plans to do this by offering industry expertise and local knowledge, on top of the data centers themselves.

Malana said data centers being built by the company, including STT Fairview, can serve both the current and future needs of the hyperscale industry. Hyperscalers refer to companies that are always on the lookout for data centers where they can store applications and information.

STT GDC Philippines is a joint venture among Globe, Ayala Corp. and the flagship STT GDC in Singapore, which manages 95 data centers in 11 countries.

Telco giant PLDT Inc., through VITRO Inc., still dominates the data center industry in the Philippines, operating 11 data centers in its portfolio, with the largest just recently opened in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.