NEXTDC to partner with BHP, Vocus and Microsoft with launch of First Pilbara Data Centre

Media Release

NEXTDC to partner with BHP, Vocus and Microsoft with launch of First Pilbara Data Centre

Delivering regional businesses direct access to crucial cloud and digital infrastructure

Pilbara, Western Australia – 15 August 2023. Leading data centre provider NEXTDC Ltd (ASX:NXT) announces its latest Edge data centre is to be located in Port Hedland, Pilbara – the first of its kind in the region. 

This new Tier III certified data centre, PH1 Port Hedland, is part of NEXTDC’s Edge strategy, which is working to deliver best-in-class Edge data centre facilities to meet growing demand for direct connectivity to cloud services and critical infrastructure co-located in regional Australia and is expected to be ready for customers operating 
across the Pilbara in August 2023.

NEXTDC Chief Commercial Officer David Dzienciol, says the new centre will support key industries in the region which underpin economic growth.

“The Pilbara region is clearly a strategic market for us as we extend our capabilities alongside the mining and resources sector. Multi-faceted partnerships are increasingly driving the need for real-time insights, improved response times and better availability of data as key fundamentals in digital transformation across many industry sectors.

“The new Port Hedland site will enable NEXTDC and our ecosystem partners, including BHP, Vocus and Microsoft, to offer continued innovation such as cloud technology together with operational support to the mining and resources sector which is currently undergoing exciting digital change and transformation,” Mr Dzienciol said.

The edge-based strategy realised at PH1 enables NEXTDC to extend its’ technology ecosystem to the region through its partnership with Vocus. PH1 Port Hedland will host Vocus’ ‘Project Horizon’ fibre, a new 2,000km fibre backbone through the Pilbara region providing mining and resource businesses with access to low-latency, high-capacity connectivity for mission critical operations. 

“PH1 represents a critical facility in the ongoing network investment undertaken by Vocus in supporting Australia’s North-West, including its subsea Darwin-Jakarta-Singapore Cable (DJSC) offering new and alternative routes between Perth, Port Hedland, Darwin and South-East Asia. Importantly, Vocus are very excited to be partnering with NEXTDC in connecting critical infrastructure with secure, high-speed access for the mining and resources sector, both in the PIlbara and across North-western Australia.” Stated Ellie 
Sweeney, CEO Vocus.

Malcolm De Silva, Director of Mining and Energy and Director for WA at Microsoft Australia and New Zealand, highlighted the new business value generated from edge facilities such as NEXTDC’s PH1 Port Hedland.

“Having the ability to make important business decisions with real-time data in remote areas like Port Hedland is vital for the resources sector,” De Silva said. “Importantly, PH1 Port Hedland combines security, safety and uptime resilience with low-latency connectivity, allowing Microsoft to extend its cloud applications and platforms to a number of mining operators across remote Australia.”

Following on from the recent Sunshine Coast launch, PH1 Port Hedland will be the second of a series of geographically dispersed, new Edge data centres that will service regional businesses and networks across Australia, leveraging NEXTDC’s already established network of core data centres.

Like NEXTDC’s Metropolitan data centre footprint, these new edge sites are interconnected to NEXTDC’s extensive national digital services ecosystem via AXON, NEXTDC’s elastic interconnection services platform. 

AXON will provide direct and secure access to NEXTDC’s broader national digital services ecosystem, comprising over 770 technology partners and Australia’s largest network of public cloud onramps for platforms such as Microsoft, AWS, and more.

With a total planned capacity of 1.5MW, PH1 Port Hedland has been engineered to support the highest levels of customer availability and is backed by NEXTDC's industry leading service guarantee of 100% uptime. 

-ENDS -

About NEXTDC

NEXTDC is an ASX 100-listed technology company and Asia’s most innovative Data Centre-as-a-Service provider. We are building the infrastructure platform for the digital economy, delivering the critical power, security and interconnection capability for global cloud computing providers, enterprise and government.

NEXTDC is recognised globally for the design, construction and operation of Australia’s only network of Uptime Institute certified Tier IV facilities, and the only data centre operator in the Southern Hemisphere to achieve Tier IV Gold certification for Operational Sustainability. NEXTDC has a strong focus on sustainability and operational excellence through renewable energy sources and delivering world-class operational efficiency. Our data centres have been engineered to deliver exceptional levels of efficiency and the industry’s lowest Total Cost of Operation through NABERS 5-star energy efficiency.

NEXTDC as a company has been a certified carbon neutral organisation under the Australian Government’s Climate Active program. Our Cloud Centre partner ecosystem is Australia’s most dynamic digital marketplace, comprising >700 carriers, cloud providers and IT service providers, enabling local and international customers to source and connect with cloud platforms, service providers and vendors to build complex hybrid cloud networks and scale their critical IT infrastructure services.

NEXTDC is where the cloud lives®.

For more information, contact:
NEXTDC Media Team
nextdc@redhavas.com