Login
iscover
The ASX-listed technology company has announced plans to open a new data storage facility and a centre of excellence in Sydney.
To continue reading the rest of this article, please log in.
Create free account to get unlimited news articles and more!
Macquarie Data Centres, a subsidiary of Macquarie Telecom Group, has revealed that it will launch a new data centre at its Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus in Sydney, along with a Sovereign Cyber Security Centre of Excellence.
The data centre, Intellicentre 3 Super West, will be designed, constructed and operated to support corporate, government and multinational clients, while also contributing to Australia’s broader development agenda.
A State Significant Development Application process has commenced to build the 32-megawatt (MW) IT load facility, which will be located in the Sydney North Zone of the Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus.
Once complete, the new facility is expected to increase the total IT load of the campus to 50MW.
IC3 Super West will be designed to meet a number of security, safety and efficiency standards, including:
- Security Construction and Equipment Committee (SCEC) Zone 4;
- ISO 27001 and SOC 2 (information security);
- PCI DSS 3.2, ISO 45001(occupational health and safety); and
- ISO 14001 (environmental management).
According to the firm, the project would generate over 1,200 jobs in construction, engineering and cyber security.
Construction of Phase 1 of IC3 Super West is scheduled to be completed in the second half of 2023, subject to final board approvals, with planning permission expected to be granted in early 2022.
“This data centre will attract new investment into Australia from multinationals looking to expand in the Asia-Pacific region,” Macquarie Telecom Group CEO David Tudehope said.
“The NSW digital economy is rapidly growing, and this project will create world-class infrastructure and valuable long-term jobs in the digital and cyber security sector.”
Meanwhile, the new Sovereign Cyber Security Centre of Excellence will be built to house physical and virtual infrastructure designed to monitor and manage cyber security developments.
The cyber security centre, which will operate around the clock, is to be monitored by trained engineers, with infrastructure and personnel housed in IC3 Super West.
According to Macquarie, the sovereign focus of the new facility would provide skills development opportunities to the sector, which, according to AustCyber, will require approximately 18,000 new workers in Australia by 2026.
“This global scale data centre will be one of the most certified facilities in the region,” Macquarie Data Centres group executive David Hirst said.
“Data is growing exponentially, and we have demonstrated time and time again our ability to deliver infrastructure to meet that growth.
“Our data centres are sovereign, secure and certified to manage Australia’s most important data and drive the digital economy.”
These latest announcements follow the unveiling of Macquarie’s Intellicentre 5 Bunker (IC5) in Canberra – designed to house “highly classified” Commonwealth government data, including sensitive material stored by the Department of Defence.
IC5 is expected to support a “fully sovereign ecosystem”, encompassing a local supply chain, Australian government security-cleared staff, data access and storage.
These new facilities form part of Macquarie’s broader $200 million investment in national data centres, aimed at enhancing data sovereignty and cyber resilience, while also fostering digital skills development.
[Related: MINDEF unveils new data centre]
Charbel Kadib
News Editor – Defence and Security, Momentum Media
Prior to joining the defence and aerospace team in 2020, Charbel was news editor of The Adviser and Mortgage Business, where he covered developments in the banking and financial services sector for three years. Charbel has a keen interest in geopolitics and international relations, graduating from the University of Notre Dame with a double major in politics and journalism. Charbel has also completed internships with The Australian Department of Communications and the Arts and public relations agency Fifty Acres.
