The Chief Executive Officer Ahmed Mohamud Yusuf of Somalia’s biggest telecommunications firm says there are plans to build more green data centers to support the growing demands of the local and the global AI economy.
Hormuud Telecom Somalia Inc.’s investment in solar-powered data centers continues despite upheaval in the Horn of Africa nation.
“We operate in a complex environment with security concerns and infrastructure gaps that can make progress slower than we’d like,” Yusuf said in response to emailed questions. “At the same time, Somalia is brimming with opportunity.”
Hormuud has 11 data centers with a combined 10 megawatt-hours of capacity, with as much as 95% of the energy coming from solar. Target capacity for the new facilities will depend on demand, he said.
“Somalia is one of the sunniest countries in the world and many of our data centers are already running on solar power during the day,” Yusuf said.
Hormuud, Somali for pioneer, was formed 22 years ago about a decade after the nation descended into civil war. It’s since co-financed two of four submarine cables landing on Somalia’s coast and has extended a fiber-optic network to key cities. It’s also rolling out 5G technology to cover 70% of the population in the next year.
Hormuud — the biggest operator in a market that includes Somtel, Telesom, and Golis Telecom Somalia — serves 4 million customers, or a fifth of the population, and has 13,000 shareholders. In the past five years, it helped distribute £800 million ($1 billion) in humanitarian aid directly to beneficiaries.
(Bloomberg)
