Equinix Helsinki HE5: Equinix to expand two data centers in Helsinki, Finland

Equinix Invests €32M to Expand its Data Centers in Finland

The new investment supports growing customer demand in Finland and Equinix’s broader commitment to the Nordics

HELSINKI, Finland — January 25, 2021 — Equinix, Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX), the world’s digital infrastructure company, today announced it is continuing to invest in growing its data center capacity in Finland. The company is expanding two of its International Business Exchange™ (IBX®) sites—HE5 and HE7—in Helsinki, with a 32 million euro investment boosting the capacity for further digitization of local and international customers. To date, Equinix has invested approximately €147M into its data centers in Finland.

The volume of data generated, processed and utilized, across industries worldwide, continues to grow at a rapid pace, reinforced by the huge demand for network services resulting from the pandemic-driven need to work remotely. Equinix is increasing its capacity in Finland to meet this demand.

This investment is part of Equinix’s continuing metro growth strategy in the Nordics region, with Finland being a good location to reach the 27 million consumers in the Nordics area. The expansion also utilizes and further supports Finland’s standing as a connectivity hub between Europe, the Baltics and Russia.

Finland is seeing a rapid increase in cloud adoption and deployment, with the hyperscale sector expected to grow to $17 billion in Finland by 20251. Through Equinix’s expanded data center capacity, Finnish and Nordic customers further afield, have increased access to Equinix Fabric™, a global interconnection service enabling businesses to connect their digital infrastructure and services on demand, at software speed. Utilizing Equinix Fabric, enterprises, network services and cloud providers alike have the ability to quickly and securely scale their digital businesses just as rapidly as the digital economy requires it.

Highlights/Key Facts

• The new expansions to HE5 and HE7 will add approximately 800 cabinets to Equinix’s current portfolio, providing further digital infrastructure capacity for customers operating in the Nordics. According to the latest Global Interconnection Index (GXI), an annual market study published by Equinix, interconnection bandwidth—the measure of private connectivity for the transfer of data between organizations—will achieve a 45% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2019 to 2023, within the EMEA region. This growth is also clearly visible in Finland, and more widely in the Nordics.
• Equinix continues to invest in Finland to support the country’s many emerging technology-driven industries, including financial services, healthcare, smart city, smart maritime and smart mobility. Finland is also one of the gaming superpowers in the world, with AMD, EA, Nvidia, Ubisoft, Unity, and Zynga, all present in the market. 
• In addition to key sector growth, Finland is seeing strong progress in relation to technological advancements, such as 5G. To further support the progression of 5G globally, Equinix recently announced the launch of its 5G and Edge Proof of Concept Center (POCC). The POCC will provide a 5G and edge “sandbox” environment, enabling Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), cloud platforms, technology vendors and enterprises to directly connect with the largest edge data center platform in order to test, demonstrate and accelerate complex 5G and edge deployment and interoperability scenarios.
• According to the Equinix 2019-20 Global Tech Trends Survey, 39% of IT leaders in Finland are prioritizing moving their infrastructure to the digital edge—where population centers, commerce, and digital and business ecosystems meet and interact in real time—as part of their organization’s overarching technology strategy.
• HE5 and HE7 are a part of Equinix’s growing global digital infrastructure platform, Platform Equinix®, which consists of more than 220 data centers worldwide, enabling direct and secure connectivity to customers and partners across digital supply chains.
• Equinix has a strong focus on sustainability and continues to make advancements in the way it designs, builds and operates its data centers, with high energy efficiency standards. The newly expanded sites in Helsinki contribute to a portfolio of the most energy-efficient data centers in the world. All six of Equinix’s data centers in Helsinki use 100% renewable energy. Sustainability measures deployed locally include an initiative in place since 2010 to recycle excess heat from the data centers to both heat and cool apartment buildings within the city of Helsinki, via Helsinki Energy.

Quotes

• Sami Holopainen, Managing Director, Finland, Equinix:
  “The pace of digitization worldwide, including in Finland, has greatly accelerated in the past few years. The COVID-19 pandemic has further contributed to this, with many digital transformation plans implemented more quickly than companies had originally anticipated was necessary. Customer demand in Finland continues to grow, which is why we are investing in additional capacity to further support the technological developments of companies operating here. As an important part of Equinix’s global platform, we are well equipped to help our customers in their digitization efforts”.  
• Judith Gardiner, Vice President, Growth and Emerging Markets, Equinix:
  “Finland is an excellent location for Equinix. The cool Nordic climate is a tremendous asset in reducing the need for cooling power, and its connectivity to other markets, particularly Eastern Europe, very much supports digital business options. In the near future, Finland will also have the shortest latency route between Europe and Asia-Pacific, when the Arctic Connect Cable project, led by the Cinia Alliance, is complete. Meanwhile, the expansion of HE5 and HE7 is a part of an ongoing growth strategy in the region.” 
• Satishchandra Doreswamy , VP & Global Head, Cloud Infrastructure Unit, TCS:
  "TCS has been helping customers accelerate their digital transformation journeys using our  Enterprise Cloud Platform (ECP) as a flexible, future-proof, hybrid cloud infrastructure layer to enhance their business agility, and explore new ecosystem-led innovations to power their growth. We have been deploying ECP for customers across the world, including in Europe, leveraging our strategic partnership with Equinix. We believe that the expansion of their centers in Finland further strengthens our ability to service customers in the Nordics and across Europe while ensuring low latency, security, compliance and data sovereignty.