Plans by Equinix to build two large data centres in Cape Town are on hold. The City of Cape Town is waiting for Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis to decide on an appeal against the project, MyBroadband reported.
The two facilities were planned for King Air Industria Park. They form part of the American company’s R7.5-billion plan to build hyperscale data centres on the African continent.
“The problem is that nobody has to prove it before the rights are granted. ‘Trust us’ is not a planning condition,” said Paul Colmer, an executive member of the Wireless Access Providers’ Association.
Residents fought the plan after the city approved it. They said Equinix did not disclose how much water and electricity the new facilities would need.
According to GroundUp, the city’s approval was legally suspended in September. This followed an appeal lodged in August by groups that say they represent residents.
The groups include the UK non-profit Foxglove, the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), Green Anglicans, Open Secrets and the Cape Town Housing Assembly.
“Objections focused around the failure of Equinix to provide information about the impact of the data centre, and the harm it would cause to surrounding communities,” Foxglove said in July.
The SAHRC has also started its own inquiry into the data centre industry. It is looking at how power demand and water use affect people who live near these facilities.
Hill-Lewis is acting as the city’s planning appeals authority. He will decide on the Housing Assembly’s appeal, which asks the city to reject Equinix’s application to use the land.
If he rejects the plan, it would stop Equinix’s hyperscale plans for Cape Town. MyBroadband reported that it could also affect future data centre projects in South Africa.
Colmer said the outcome could shape how other municipalities judge similar applications. Cities may start asking companies to disclose water and electricity needs before they approve projects.
“South Africa needs local AI compute for sovereignty, latency and jobs, and much of the industry already builds responsibly, with closed-loop and dry cooling that sips rather than gulps,” Colmer said.
He said Equinix now sees the King Air Industria site as a “long-term land bank” with no immediate plans to develop it. “It has submitted no planning or development applications,” he said.
In March, Equinix bought land worth R890 million in Johannesburg and Cape Town. The company already runs a facility in Johannesburg.
Sandile Dube, Equinix managing director for South Africa, told Bloomberg that the company planned to add 160MW of data centre capacity in the country.
“Our own balance sheet funds all investments, and our intention is to do so with all of our future investments in South Africa,” Dube said.
Colmer said companies should list their water, power, generator and noise figures before cities approve their plans. He also called for conditions written into approvals or contracts, so they still apply if the owner changes.
Cape Town is drafting new guidelines for large data centre applications. The city has not yet confirmed what they will require or whether they will apply to existing applications.
Source: this article is based on reporting by MyBroadband. Image: MyBroadband. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice Business desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Anelisa Nkuna covers business and money news for Tzaneen Voice. Anelisa reports on the rand, fuel prices, interest rates, jobs, Eskom, Transnet, farming and company results. The aim is simple: explain what the numbers mean for household budgets, small businesses and workers in South Africa.