BOOM IN DATA CENTRES
More than a dozen data centre facilities are currently in operation in Johor.
Singapore-based Princeton Digital Group is among the major data centre players that operate there. The first phase of its 130 megawatt-data centre in Asia was up and running within a year.
The boom was driven by a surge in e-commerce and AI-related activities, said Princeton Digital Group’s managing director and chief technology officer Asher Ling.
Johor’s proximity to Singapore and the Malaysian government’s business-friendly policies are also major draws, he told CNA.
“The support we received from the Malaysian authorities, both at the federal level and at the state level, was phenomenal,” said Mr Ling.
“This would never have been able to be achieved if folks were very bureaucratic.”
The company has two 130 megawatt substations on standby, he noted. In the unlikely case that the entire Johor power grid goes down, there are generators lined up – with 48 hours of diesel fuel underneath – that will keep data centre operations running.
As data centres are relatively new in Johor, companies have found it tough securing a pipeline of experienced engineers. Initially, some engineers were brought in from Singapore to support the local staff.
