Continuing to capitalize on its key advantage in the current market - capacity to raise capital - Digital Realty Trust announced an expansion of its data center in St. Louis, Mo. The company will be adding 30,000-60,000 square feet of data center space and an additional 16 MW of power capacity at its 210 N. Tucker Blvd.

The few data center providers able to finance capacity expansion are at an advantage in today's market, reportedly characterized by high demand for space and its comparatively low supply that grows at a very slow rate. In recent months, Digital Realty, a wholesale colocation service provider, has been growing its footprint aggressively, buying existing data centers - some of them fully leased - and green-field sites for build-out.

\"The increased level of datacenter demand in St. Louis has prompted us to expand our commitment to this market,\" Digital Realty VP of Portfolio Management Glenn Benoist said in a statement. \"With a total of 20 MW of power and a significant amount of new datacenter space, the facility will be the premier site for St. Louis' growing datacenter market.\"
 

The 18-story facility in St. Louis has a total of 200,000 square feet of space

Construction of the new technical space has commenced and the trust expects to complete it by the third quarter of 2010.

In January, Digital Realty announced agreements to sell $600 million in securities. Of that amount, $100 million was sold to Prudential Investment Management and another $500 million was arranged to be sold to a group of private investors.