(WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) — Data center operator Equinix (www.equinix.com) announced on Monday it plans to build its second International Business Exchange data center, HK2, in Hong Kong.
The new $63 million HK2 IBX data center will provide for a total of more than 1,450 cabinet equivalents.
Set to open in the third quarter of 2011, the $20 million first phase of the HK2 IBX center will offer an initial 450 cabinet equivalents.
The new data center will expand Equinix’s presence in the Hong Kong market, which contains one of the largest concentrations of banking and financial companies in the region.
Located near the existing HK1 IBX data center in the western part of the New Territories region, the HK2 facility will have direct fiber connection with the HK1 IBX data center.
This connectivity will allow HK2 customers to proximity and direct access to the financial ecosystems, including trading venues, buy and sell side firms, market data providers, technology providers and financial networks, at the HK1 IBX data center.
The new data center will also feature highly reliable data center services and operations, offering availability, scalability and low latency connectivity to a wide range of networks available at the HK1 IBX data center.
These services are pariticularly important for cloud and IT service providers seeking to optimize business exchange and increase end-user satisfaction.
“Companies seek to deploy mission critical applications within a well-connected, carrier-neutral data center operator with a presence around the world,” says Steve Smith, CEO and president of Equinix. “Equinix’s global platform provides state-of-the-art colocation and reliable interconnection services across 35 markets. Our customers can choose from top network providers and connect with partners in market ecosystems to optimize business performance.”
The HK2 is the fourth in a series of recently announced IBX data center expansions in the Asia Pacific region, which includes a new SY3 data center in Sydney and a third phase expansion of its existing SG2 center in Singapore.
