CyrusOne officially entered the Japanese data center market earlier this year, when it announced its joint venture with Kansai Electric Power Company, Inc. (KEPCO). Established in 1951, and headquartered in Osaka, KEPCO is a major Japanese electric utility and power provider that also operates telecommunications and real estate development businesses in Japan.
As a leading global data center developer and operator specializing in delivering state-of-the-art digital infrastructure solutions, CyrusOne’s strategic decision to enter this joint venture with KEPCO was aimed at expanding its global presence and customer offerings in the region. In the near future and spanning over the course of the next decade, the joint venture with KEPCO will undertake hyperscale data center development and operations in Japan with plans to invest more than $7B USD reaching a business scale of 900 MW.
The joint venture, referred to as CyrusOne KEP, brings together two companies with extensive technical and operational expertise to develop data centers in the region that can meet the mission-critical requirements of hyperscale platform companies. Combining CyrusOne’s data center development and operational knowledge with KEPCO’s power capabilities and local knowledge provides a unique opportunity to simultaneously optimize the digital and power infrastructure of our data centers. It will allow the infrastructure to be better aligned with the broader power grid to drive resilience, efficiency, and smart development, all of which are core qualities that we strive to achieve and maintain in all our data centers.
With data center locations across Europe and the United States, this agreement marks CyrusOne’s first major move into the Asia-Pacific region. With an already robust digital infrastructure and advanced telecommunications network, Japan offers a solid entry position for CyrusOne, whilst the JV mitigates additional costs by reducing the need for significant additional investments in infrastructure and also provides an opportunity to engage with a diverse range of industries like manufacturing, finance, and technology.
CyrusOne’s expansion into Japan, specifically, has strategic implications that contribute to the company’s long-term growth strategy. As the colloquial center point of the Asia-Pacific region, Japan represents a central location that has easy access to other Asia-Pacific countries and economies. Japan’s geographical location coupled with its well-developed infrastructure make it an attractive hub and starting point for CyrusOne to build from. The country’s stable business environment, strong intellectual property protection, and highly skilled workforce make it an ideal location for CyrusOne to establish a long-term presence in the region.
The Asia-Pacific region has become the nerve center for some of the world’s most cutting-edge technology innovations and serves as a major international business hub, with Japan one of the biggest, if not the biggest focal point in the region with a long history of technological advancements and innovation. There are strong research and development capabilities in the country, especially in industries like electronics, telecommunications, and software development, all of which are deeply integrated into CyrusOne’s services. So, for CyrusOne, entering this market and partnering with KEPCO means gaining access to cutting-edge technologies, including high-speed networks and innovative power solutions to better serve our customer needs and sustainability goals. This will in turn help both companies strengthen their reputations for state-of-the-art services, improved operational efficiencies, and market leadership in a highly competitive industry.
Speaking with a variety of leaders and key decision makers at both CyrusOne and KEPCO, all parties agree that this joint venture places both companies at the heart of the APAC region as a forefront leader in the innovative data center and power solutions space. The partnership is a crucial step towards CyrusOne’s ability to serve our customers further and better with growth aspirations that span across the world.
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