South African data center company Teraco has expanded its data center outside Johannesburg.

“We’re proud to announce the completion of Phase 2 of JB4, our hyperscale data center located at the Bredell Campus in Ekurhuleni, east of Johannesburg,” Teraco announced this week. “With this expansion, JB4 now delivers 50MW of critical IT power, making it the largest standalone data center facility ever built in Africa.”

The Digital Realty subsidiary said the 30MW addition makes JB4 the largest standalone data center in Africa, serving 50MW of critical IT power load. The firm also said it is the first time 5MW data halls have been built across all of Africa.

In total, the data center spans 80,000 sqm (861,110 sq ft) and offers 80MW of utility power supply and 50MW of critical IT power load. It comprises 14 data halls totaling 17,000 sqm (182,985 sq ft).

The new phase totals six data halls, with each hall supporting 5MW of critical IT power load. The halls are able to support liquid-to-liquid cooling, offering customers the ability to deploy air or direct-to-chip cooling as required.

Jan Hnizdo, Teraco CEO, said: “South Africa has become the technology and data center hub for sub-Saharan Africa, acting as a springboard for cloud, AI, and content provision into Africa. Massive global investments in undersea cables, such as Equiano and 2Africa, further strengthen this position. This will enable global cloud providers to service not only the South African market but also the rest of the sub-Saharan African region.

The company broke ground on the campus in November 2020 and launched the first phase in 2022. Work on the second phase of the site started in July 2023.

With this latest expansion, Teraco's portfolio totals 189MW of critical power load. The company operates the Isando (JB1/JB3/JB5: 70MW, with another in development) and Bredell (JB2/JB4: 64MW) campuses outside Jo’burg, as well as the Cape Town Campus (CT1/CT2: 53MW) and one facility in Durban (DB1: 2MW).

Founded in 2008, Digital Realty acquired a majority stake in Teraco in January 2022, in a deal valuing the company at approximately $3.5 billion.