Nigeria's data centre market is poised for explosive growth, with installed capacity projected to nearly quadruple over the next five years, according to a new report by Estate Intel. This rapid expansion solidifies Nigeria's role as a key emerging data hub within Africa.
The total installed data centre capacity is forecast to jump from 56.1 megawatts (MW) in 2025 to over 218 MW by 2030, representing a staggering growth rate of more than 3.7 times.
Sector Momentum and Resilience
The data centre segment has maintained robust momentum since the 2020 pandemic, which highlighted its critical resilience and strategic importance to Nigeria's burgeoning digital economy.
The industry has recorded a steady annual growth rate of approximately 21% since 2020. This upward trend is expected to continue through 2030, strongly supported by increasing participation from major global operators, including Equinix, Open Access Data Centres (OADC), and Digital Realty.
While other real estate sectors have faced challenges in recent years, the data centre industry is experiencing sustained high demand driven by the growth of cloud storage, fintech operations, and various digital services across the country.
Scale and Scope of New Projects
The report notes a significant increase in the scale of new developments. Between 2020 and 2024, Nigeria completed 14 data centres, each with a median capacity of 1.5MW. However, over the next five-year period (2025-2030), the median capacity of newly delivered data centres is set to triple to 4.5MW.
Several large-scale projects are currently underway, signaling strong confidence from both international and local players:
- Airtel is developing its major 35MW Nxtra Data Centre in Eko Atlantic.
- Equinix is constructing a 20MW data centre in Alaro City, Lagos.
- Open Access Data Centres (OADC) is building a 24MW facility along the Lekki Corridor.
Key Developers Driving the Boom
The report also sheds light on the main contractors responsible for developing Nigeria’s crucial data centre infrastructure:
- ITB Nigeria: Handled the construction of Rack Centre LG2 (Ikeja), Airtel Nxtra (Eko Atlantic), and African Data Centres LOS1 (Eko Atlantic).
- Vita Construction Limited: Developed the MainOne MDX-i facilities (Lekki and Victoria Island), which are now owned by Equinix following its 2022 acquisition of MainOne.
- Cappa & D’Alberto: Executed the GTBank DC01 Data Centre (Ikate-Elegushi), which was Africa’s first Tier III-certified data centre in the financial services sector. The firm is also building the Jovis Nigeria Limited Data Centre in Victoria Island.
The robust pipeline and increasing scale of these projects underpin the prediction that Nigeria’s digital economy is entering a major phase of infrastructure development.