It is PDG’s sixth campus after Singapore, China, Indonesia, India and Japan.
Mr Asher Ling, chief technology officer and managing director of PDG, Singapore, told CNA that expanding into Johor is in line with the SG+ strategy. He cited Sedenak’s pull factors such as “distance and connectivity”.
“In addition to its strong power and connectivity infrastructure, the area also offers proximity to high-growth tech markets such as Singapore, which is about 40 minutes away,” he added.
Mr Lee Ting Han stressed that the southern state sees itself not as a competitor to Singapore on this front, but a partner.
The Johor state government is pushing for the SEZ to be in place by the first quarter of 2025 as it hopes to leverage both sides’ “complementary strengths” across sectors including the digital economy and data centres.
TACKLING WATER SHORTAGES AND POWER OUTAGES
While there is optimism about Johor’s potential to be a data-centre hinterland for companies in Singapore, some experts warn that the industry is energy-intensive and requires a copious amount and consistent supply of water and power. Johor has experienced periodic disruptions to both recently.
In April, parts of southern Johor reportedly experienced water shortages during the Hari Raya period, prompting the state government to urge the state’s main water supply company Ranhill SAJ to deploy water tanks at hotspot areas.
Water disruptions also impacted residents as some reportedly complained of not having access to water to drink and shower with.
In 2019, more than 250,000 residents in various parts of Johor including Kulai, Kota Tinggi and Simpang Renggam were hit by water shortages, prompting the state government to impose water rationing.
Parts of Johor have also experienced power outages. In December 2023, Malaysia’s checkpoint building linked to the Woodlands Causeway, known as the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex (BSI CIQ), suffered hours-long power cuts.
These incidents are “indeed concerns” for Johor’s data centre industry, but “not necessarily insurmountable obstacles”, said NTU’s Dr Wen.
