Global colocation and interconnection company Equinix, has acquired three colocation data centers from Axtel S.A.B. de C.V. (BMV: AXTELCPO) that serve the Mexico City and Monterrey metro areas of Mexico. Equinix has paid $175 million for these three colocation data centers in an all-cash transaction.
The three colocation data centers will add approximately 115,000 square feet of colocation space to the Equinix International Business Exchange (IBX) data center portfolio. Given the power capacity of these three sites, this transaction would make Equinix one of the largest network-neutral colocation data center operators in Mexico.
Equinix MX1, MX2, MO1
The two data centers that serve the Mexico City metro are strategically located in Querétaro. Both are carrier-neutral colocation facilities with multiple diverse fiber entry points that include five network service providers currently operating within each data center.
The first facility is a 110,000 gross-square-foot data center with 37,000 square feet of colocation space. It is the first data center in Latin America with an energy cogeneration system. It also features ICREA (International Computer Room Experts Association) certification. This colocation facility has been renamed the Equinix MX1 IBX data center.
The second facility is currently an 80,000 gross-square-foot data center with 6,000 square feet of colocation space. This facility will provide Equinix with expansion opportunities of up to 60,000 square feet of colocation space. This colocation facility has been renamed the Equinix MX2 IBX data center.
The Monterrey area colocation facility is a highly connected data center offering a key connectivity gateway between the U.S. and Mexico. It features 25,000 gross square feet of data center space with 12,500 square feet of colocation space. It is a carrier-neutral facility with 10 network service providers. This facility has been renamed the Equinix MO1 IBX data center.
$500 Million Investment
Including current expansion projects, Equinix has invested more than $500 million in its Latin American operations including Brazil, Colombia and now Mexico.
Combined with previous Equinix acquisitions of key regional traffic hubs in Dallas (Infomart) and Miami (NAP of the Americas), this expansion would further strengthen Equinix’s global colocation data center platform by increasing interconnection between North, Central and South America.
“The addition of these three facilities in two strategic technology metros in Mexico will enable current and future customers to operate on an expanded global interconnection platform to process, store and distribute larger volumes of latency-sensitive data and applications at the digital edge, closer to end users and local markets,” said Jon Lin, President, Americas, Equinix. “It will also enable Equinix to enrich its ecosystem of nearly 10,000 customers that come to Equinix to directly connect to each other within a secure, private and proximate environment.”
Cloud Exchange Fabric
As a part of the agreement, existing colocation customers within the three data centers will transition to Equinix. Axtel will be both a customer as well as a strategic marketing partner of Equinix in Mexico.
Equinix plans to offer Equinix Cloud Exchange Fabric (ECX Fabric) in all three data centers. ECX Fabric is an on-demand, SDN-enabled interconnection service that allows any business to connect between its own distributed infrastructure and any other company’s distributed infrastructure, including the world’s largest network service and cloud providers, on Platform Equinix.
“As Latin America is forecasted to be the fastest-growing region for colocation services over the next five years, this acquisition positions Equinix well to businesses seeking to expand and build out their IT infrastructure at key edge metros within the region,” said Dan Thompson, Research Director, 451 Research. “The three new data centers in Mexico will add to the Equinix presence in Brazil and Colombia, along with its operations in the north-south interconnection points in Miami and Dallas.”
