Vertiv, a global leader in critical digital infrastructure, is extending its collaboration with Airtel Africa through Nxtra, their Data Center division. Starting with Nigeria, this collaboration is a first step in Nxtra’s strategic objective of establishing one of the largest high-capacity data centre networks in Africa, strategically located in major cities and bolstered by its extensive operations experience in India.

“Nxtra has been a valued customer for nearly three decades,” said Karsten Winther, president of Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) for Vertiv. “This next chapter in our collaboration demonstrates the power of combining local support in Africa with international manufacturing and innovation.”

“As we invest into high capacity, high quality data centers for Africa, it was crucial to partner with a vendor who combines global capabilities with strong local presence,” said Yash Issur, CEO of Nxtra by Airtel Africa. “Vertiv's extensive multinational expertise, coupled with their established service team in Africa, provides us the reliability and support we need. We're particularly pleased to name Vertiv as a main vendor for the first project in Nigeria and extend a collaboration ranging from India to Africa.” 

Planned growth across Africa

The Nigerian facility of 42 megawatts (MW) of capacity will be completed in a four-phase rollout process, expected to be fully operational by 2028. Vertiv will provide thermal management solutions and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems with batteries for the project, marking the start of a three-year rollout across Africa that will deliver energy-efficient, scalable, and reliable infrastructure. Vertiv will also provide commissioning, handover, and five years of maintenance services supported by its established Nigerian service team. This enables Nxtra’s facilities to have strong on-the-ground support for long-term operations.

Says Wojtek Piorko, managing director for Africa at Vertiv: “Africa’s growing, data-hungry population is a key driver of digital growth on the continent, and more data centres are required to meet this demand. Our collaboration in Africa with Nxtra marks an important milestone in strengthening Africa’s critical digital infrastructure. Together, we are bringing proven global expertise and advanced technology into Nigeria and beyond.”

In addition to the Nigerian site, Vertiv is also working with Nxtra on forward-looking projects in the markets where Airtel Africa operates, with the Nairobi-based operation anticipated to surpass the Nigerian site in scale.