Princeton Digital Launches $150M Jakarta Data Centre as Sixth Indonesia Project

Singapore-based Princeton Digital Group continues to draw on Indonesia’s fast-growing internet economy as it launches development of its third data centre project in the Jakarta area and sixth overall in Southeast Asia’s most populous nation.

The new 22-megawatt data centre, called Jakarta Cibitung 2 (JC2), is expected to be a $150 million investment for the Warburg Pincus-backed firm and is being built within the same campus that houses PDG’s existing JC1 in Cibitung, an emerging cloud hub about 35 kilometres (21.7 miles) east of central Jakarta.

The expanded 35MW campus will serve global cloud companies and domestic internet firms in the Jakarta area as the world’s fourth most populous nation ramps up adoption of cloud-based services, PDG said Wednesday in a press release.

“PDG’s growth in Indonesia demonstrates our continued ability to expand rapidly in markets that matter to our customers,” said co-founder, chairman and CEO Rangu Salgame.

Hopped Up on Java

PDG expects to bring the 23,850 square metre (256,719 square foot) facility online by the fourth quarter of 2022. Located in an industrial zone with access to electricity from two nearby power plants, PDG is aiming for a high level of efficiency, with the project designed to have a power usage effectiveness ratio (a measurement of how much energy is used to power the computing equipment compared to HVAC and other facility overhead) of less than 1.4.

“Jakarta is an exciting market, Cibitung being the pre-eminent cloud cluster in the region,” said Stephanus Tumbelaka, PDG’s managing director for Indonesia. “With the expanded campus, PDG has become a significant player in the Indonesian market. With the explosive economic growth and rapid digitalisation by both government and private sectors in Indonesia, the market is core to PDG’s strategy.”

The Jakarta data centre co-location market is expected to grow at a five-year compound annual rate of 23.7 percent through 2025, according to a report from Structure Research. On a megawatt basis, total inventory is forecast to grow at a five-year CAGR of 23.1 percent, the consultancy said.

In addition to JC1 and JC2, PDG has one data centre each in the cities of Bintaro, Surabaya and Bandung in Java and one in Pekanbaru in Sumatra.

Swelling Portfolio

PDG’s three-pronged strategy of acquisitions, carve-outs and greenfield development has enabled the operator to quickly expand its regional footprint to 19 data centres in five countries.

The most recent additions include a 97MW hyperscale campus in development near Tokyo, a 48MW multi-storey campus under construction in Navi Mumbai and a completed 42MW campus in Shanghai.

Bloomberg reported in June that PDG was considering raising funds from investors in a Warburg Pincus-arranged deal that could boost the company’s valuation to about $2 billion.

The potential $400 million capital raise would follow the $360 million financing round led by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan last year and a $230 million debt refinancing secured from China Merchants Bank several months ago.