Microsoft’s African Data Center Falters on Payment Demands, Bloomberg News Reports
The $1 billion plan could be scaled back as Microsoft and G42 seek annual payment guarantees the Kenyan government would not provide.
- Microsoft and Abu Dhabi-based tech conglomerate G42 have delayed a major East Africa data center project in Kenya following disagreements with the government over requests for guaranteed annual payments.
- The 2024 agreement envisioned a $1 billion geothermal-powered project to dramatically increase regional cloud computing, targeting an initial capacity of about 100 megawatts operationally this year.
- Kenyan President William Ruto emphasized energy constraints at a recent Nairobi event, stating, "We would need to switch off half the country for the data center to be powered."
- John Tanui, principal secretary at Kenya's Ministry of Information, insisted the project is "not failed or withdrawn," noting that power requirements and project structuring remain under active discussion.
- Microsoft President Brad Smith previously positioned the facility as the "single biggest step to advance the availability of digital technology" in Kenya to support artificial intelligence development.
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13 Articles
Times of India
The Economic TimesMicrosoft's African data center falters on payment demands, Bloomberg News reports
Microsoft's planned data center in Kenya faces delays. Disagreements with the Kenyan government over guaranteed payments have stalled the project. The company partnered with G42 for a $1 billion investment. Talks are ongoing, but the scale of the facility requires further structuring. Power requirements are also under discussion.
Microsoft’s African data centre falters on payment demands, Bloomberg News reports
A Microsoft data centre site in East Africa has been delayed by disagreements with the Kenyan government over the company’s request for guaranteed payments, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday, 10 May, citing people familiar with the matter.
Microsoft’s data center in Kenya has been paralysed by a dispute over payment guarantees. Keys to the operation The planned investment remains in the air. Microsoft had announced this center as part of a multimillion dollar plan to expand its cloud in Africa, but Nairobi’s demands on financial guarantees have stopped the works. Amazon and Google gain competitive advantage. AWS already operates data centers in South Africa and plans to expand in …
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