A Nigerian data company, Kasi Nube Ltda.., held a groundbreaking ceremony in Lekki, Lagos, on Monday to begin construction of the company’s first data center in Nigeria.
Kasi designs, builds and operates hyperscale cloud data centers to support dynamic space, power and connectivity at scale. The company says it has acquired 4 hectares of land in the Maiyegun area of Lekki, Lagos.
The company is backed by the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), a government investment institution created to manage funds that exceed budgeted hydrocarbon revenues.
The NSIA is empowered to receive, manage and invest funds in a diversified portfolio of medium- and long-term assets on behalf of all three levels of government, including the Federal Capital Territory, in preparation for the eventual depletion of hydrocarbon resources. from Nigeria.
“Kasi’s mission to build a digital platform to accelerate the cloud and interconnect people, businesses and government institutions in Nigeria and across Africa began here in Lagos, Nigeria,” said Kasi Co-Founder and CEO Johnson Agogbua.
“We are thrilled to have both the Governor of Lagos State, His Excellency Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and NSIA Executive Director, Uche Orji, to celebrate this momentous groundbreaking with us and the community.”
Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Governor of Lagos State, was the special guest at the opening ceremony.
“We congratulate Kasi on this momentous milestone. NSIA believes in the potential of digital infrastructure to serve as an enabler and accelerator of innovation,” said NSIA Executive Director NSIA Mr Orji.
Mr. Orji said: “We hope that the transformative impact of this infrastructure on the national tech space will reposition Nigeria. The Authority Board and Management are proud to be associated with this development.”
Seeking to engage hyperscalers by solving connectivity and scalability issues where others have been challenged, Kasi says it is on a mission to build the country’s leading sustainable interconnection and data center platform for Africa, designed specifically to support digital ecosystems and boost Internet access for more than a billion people.
“Sub-Saharan Africa is the fastest growing market in the world,” said Kasi co-founder and CEO Mark Adams. “When you look at where Big Tech is investing, a significant part of that growth is coming from Nigeria and Kasi’s infrastructure is a key piece of the puzzle.”
This $250 million campus in Lekki is designed to hyperscale requirements and standards, and modeled after Silicon Valley tech parks. When fully developed, the campus will be one of the largest of its kind in Africa.