Macquarie Telecom is set to build a new 32-megawatt (MW) IT load facility in Sydney, which it says will meet the needs of corporate, government, and multinational customers and enhance New South Wales’s cyber security infrastructure and capabilities.
It will be located at the Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus in Sydney North Zone and will be the largest data centre on the campus, bringing its total IT load to 50MW.
Although the full investment hasn’t been declared yet, Macquarie told IT Pro it has made an initial investment of around $78 million (£41.9 million) going into the core and shell of the centre, but expects that number to expand considerably.
The company expects the project to create over 1,200 jobs in construction, engineering, cyber security, and other fields, and to complete construction of Phase 1 of IC3 Super West in the second part of 2023, with planning permission expected to be granted in early 2022.
“This data centre will attract new investment into Australia from multinationals looking to expand in the Asia Pacific region,” said Macquarie Telecom Group CEO David Tudehope. “The NSW digital economy is rapidly growing, and this project will create world-class infrastructure and valuable long-term jobs in the digital and cyber security sector.”
The centre is designed to achieve Security Construction and Equipment Committee (SCEC) Zone 4 or higher security and ISO 27001 and SOC 2 (information security).
The Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus is also set to be the home of the “Sovereign Cyber Security Centre of Excellence”, which will contain a mix of edge physical and virtual infrastructure designed to monitor and manage cyber security events. The 24/7 centre will be monitored by trained engineers and infrastructure and personnel will be housed in the IC3 Super West to offer an Australian sovereign solution to growing cyber security threats.
“The planning, build and deployment of cyber security infrastructure for the Centre will create more than 1,200 immediate indirect jobs and an initial 31 highly skilled specialist roles to run and operate the centre by 2024,” said Stuart Ayres, minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney.
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Ayres revealed that NSW’s Jobs Plus Program will support Macquarie with infrastructure rebates and payroll tax relief, to deliver immediate job opportunities and attract further investment in the “industries of the future”.
The Jobs Plus Program, delivered through Investment NSW, provides eligible companies with support, like streamlined planning approval or subsidised training programmes, with the provision of free or subsidised government spaces and accommodation.
In May, DCI Data Centers announced it was investing $70 million into South Australia to build a new data centre in response to the growing needs of local businesses and government. The funds were set to build the region’s first purpose-built Tier-Ready III/IV secure cloud edge data centre which was going to be able to meet defence-grade security requirements.
