Keppel DC REIT has entered the German market with the purchase of the upcoming mainCubes Data Center near Frankfurt.

The facility will be built by mainCubes One Immobilien – a German data center design and construction specialist that has developed its own modular data center framework. It is expected to come into operation in 2018.

The cost of the project is €84 million ($92.5m).

Keppel DC REIT Management is the manager of the REIT, is a member of Keppel Corporation, a Singapore conglomerate that operates in telecommunications, transport, shipping, energy and property industries.

Keppel data center in Singapore
Keppel data center in Singapore – Keppel DC REIT

Inroads into Europe

Keppel DC REIT was the first data center REIT to be listed in Asia and on the Singapore Exchange (SGX-ST). It owns a total of nine data centers across Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands.

Keppel’s first German data center is a 11,780 square meter building located within the Offenbach am Main technology hub, 10 km away from Frankfurt. The site enjoys existing dark fiber infrastructure and a reliable power grid.

Keppel says the facility will be fitted out to Tier III specifications. It will expand the company’s geographic reach, and enable it to comply with current and future EU data residency rules.

“Germany holds a key position in the data center market in Europe as its excellent data center infrastructure and ease of doing business make it a compelling data center hub,” said Chua Hsien Yang, CEO of Keppel DC REIT.

“Furthermore, mainCubes DC is an attractive asset as it is strategically located in close proximity to data center-neutral fiber provider DE-CIX, which is the largest internet exchange point in the world, enabling its end users to benefit from minimal latency,” he added.

Earlier this year, Keppel announced plans to build Datahub 3, its fourth data center in Singapore, after acquiring a light industrial building for S$20 million. Phase one is expected to be completed by 2016, and the facility will offer 183,000 square feet of gross floor area when all three phases are complete.