Nigeria data centres are witnessing an unprecedented boom. The numbers tell a compelling story: from just 56.1 megawatts of capacity in 2025, Nigeria data centres will reach 218+ megawatts by 2030. This represents growth of over 3.7 times in just five years.
This explosive growth in Nigeria data centres is not just about impressive statistics. It represents a fundamental shift in how technology works in West Africa, creating real opportunities for developers, DevOps engineers, and tech professionals across Nigeria.
If you are building apps, managing cloud infrastructure, or looking to break into tech, understanding Nigeria data centres matters for your career and projects.
Major Players Investing in Nigeria Data Centres
Three significant developments are driving the Nigeria data centres revolution:
Equinix’s Expansion in Lagos
Equinix announced plans to build a new $22 million data centre in Lagos, known as LG3, scheduled to be operational by the first quarter of 2026 TechCabal. The global data centre provider entered the West African market in April 2022 through its $320 million acquisition of MainOne TechCabal.
This facility connects Nigeria data centres to global internet traffic through multiple submarine cables. For developers, this means faster connections to international services and APIs. Your applications can now communicate with users in Europe and North America with significantly lower latency.
Airtel Nxtra’s 38MW Hyperscale Facility
Airtel Nigeria is developing what will become Nigeria’s largest data centre with a 38-megawatt capacity, located in Eko Atlantic City Naija247news. This hyperscale facility among Nigeria data centres is designed specifically to handle artificial intelligence workloads and cloud computing services.
The facility will support high-performance server racks consuming up to 6 kilowatts each Naija247news. Machine learning engineers and data scientists now have local infrastructure within Nigeria data centres to train models without sending data overseas.
MTN’s Tier-III Data Centre
MTN Nigeria committed over $240 million to build a 9-megawatt Tier III data centre TechCabal. The facility, with 1,500 racks, is scheduled to come online before the end of June 2025 Connecting Africa. This addition to Nigeria data centres provides enterprise-grade reliability for Nigerian businesses.
How Nigeria Data Centres Reduce Hosting Costs
The Nigeria data centres boom is creating competitive pricing. Here are the practical impacts:
Lower Latency Through Nigeria Data Centres
Hosting within Nigeria data centres ensures less than 50 milliseconds latency for users in Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt, compared to 150+ milliseconds from servers in Europe or Asia SurferCloud. In December 2024, Huawei Technologies launched a local cloud service in Nigeria, reducing latency from over 80 milliseconds to approximately 15 milliseconds for local customers Arizton.
For e-commerce platforms, faster load times reduce cart abandonment rates by 7% per 100 milliseconds of delay SurferCloud. This translates directly to more revenue for businesses using Nigeria data centres.
Affordable Options at Nigeria Data Centres
Nigeria VPS hosting at local data centres now starts from as low as $9.9 per year, which is 80% cheaper than AWS or Google Cloud SurferCloud for similar specifications. Nigeria data centres offer competitive rates while ensuring data stays within the country.
Several Nigerian cloud startups now accept payments in naira, protecting businesses from currency fluctuations after the naira depreciated approximately 70% against the dollar between 2020 and 2024 Rest of World.
Tech Jobs Created by Nigeria Data Centres
Nigeria data centres expansion is creating significant job opportunities across multiple specializations:
Rising Developer Salaries
Current salary data shows strong compensation for tech professionals working with Nigeria data centres:
- Software developers earn between NGN 1,207,615 to NGN 4,872,672 annually PayScale
- Data engineers command salaries up to NGN 6,000,000 per year PayScale
- DevOps engineers and cloud specialists are among the highest-paid tech professionals
- Remote developers in Nigeria expect an average of $53,658 annually Arc
Companies operating Nigeria data centres like Equinix, MTN, Airtel, and Open Access Data Centres are actively hiring for data centre operations, cloud infrastructure, and DevOps roles.
Skills Needed for Nigeria Data Centres
The specific skills that Nigeria data centres companies are looking for include:
- Cloud platforms: Experience with AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure
- DevOps tools: Docker, Kubernetes, Jenkins, and CI/CD pipelines
- Data engineering: SQL, NoSQL, ETL processes, and data modeling
- Infrastructure as Code: Terraform, Ansible, and similar tools
- Cybersecurity: Network security, DDoS protection, and compliance frameworks
If you want to position yourself for opportunities at Nigeria data centres, platforms like Kinplus Technologies offer training in cloud computing, DevOps, and data engineering. These skills are essential for working in Nigeria data centres industry.
AI Infrastructure at Nigeria Data Centres
Nigeria data centres expansion is not just about traditional hosting. The infrastructure supports next-generation technologies.
Airtel’s 38MW facility includes GPU-powered infrastructure critical for AI applications Naija247news. This enables Nigerian startups to build AI-powered solutions using Nigeria data centres without relying entirely on expensive international cloud services.
For developers working with Nigeria data centres on machine learning projects, this means:
- Lower training costs for AI models
- Faster iteration cycles due to reduced latency
- Compliance with local data protection regulations
- Better performance for applications serving Nigerian users
How Developers Can Leverage Nigeria Data Centres
Here are practical steps to benefit from Nigeria data centres boom:
1. Migrate to Nigeria Data Centres
Consider migrating your applications to Nigeria data centres if your primary users are in Nigeria. The performance improvements will be immediately noticeable, especially for real-time applications like fintech platforms, streaming services, and gaming.
2. Optimize Costs Using Nigeria Data Centres
Review your current hosting costs. If you are paying in dollars for international cloud services, calculate whether Nigeria data centres could save money while improving performance. Many Nigerian startups have reduced their cloud bills by 60% or more by switching to Nigeria data centres.
3. Upskill for Nigeria Data Centres Jobs
The demand for cloud professionals at Nigeria data centres is growing faster than supply. Invest time in learning cloud platforms, containerization, and infrastructure automation through Kinplus Technologies.
4. Network at Tech Events
Stay connected with Nigeria’s tech community through platforms like Tech Linkup, where you can discover events, meetups, and conferences focused on Nigeria data centres, cloud infrastructure, and DevOps practices.
Challenges Facing Nigeria Data Centres
While Nigeria data centres boom is exciting, some challenges remain:
Power Supply for Nigeria Data Centres
Nigeria’s national grid produces less than 6 gigawatts of power TC Insights, creating challenges for Nigeria data centres that require constant, reliable electricity. Most Nigeria data centres rely on diesel and gas generators, with some exploring solar power.
Infrastructure Investment in Nigeria Data Centres
While operational costs at Nigeria data centres are decreasing, the initial investment remains high. The upcoming data center capacity in Nigeria is over 300 MW on full build GlobeNewswire, requiring significant capital.
Skills Gap at Nigeria Data Centres
Despite rising salaries, Nigeria data centres face a shortage of qualified professionals. This skills gap represents an opportunity for those willing to invest in training for Nigeria data centres roles.
Nigeria Data Centres: The Bigger Picture
Nigeria data centres boom is part of Nigeria’s broader digital transformation agenda. The Nigerian government is investing $2 billion in fiber infrastructure and launched the 3MTT Programme to train three million tech professionals by 2027 Nucamp.
With 217.5 million mobile subscribers in 2025 Mordor Intelligence, Nigeria is positioned to become West Africa’s digital hub. The country’s data centre industry has recorded steady annual growth of about 21% since 2020 Nairametrics.
Around $1.6 billion in new investments is expected to flow into upcoming data centers in Nigeria by 2027 GlobeNewswire. This sustained investment in Nigeria data centres signals confidence in Nigeria’s digital future.
Future of Nigeria Data Centres
Several important developments are coming for Nigeria data centres:
- Equinix LG3 will open in Q1 2026 TechCabal, adding more capacity to Lagos
- Airtel’s 38MW facility among Nigeria data centres is expected to reach completion by 2026
- Open Access Data Centres is developing a 24MW facility in Lagos in two phases Arizton
- Rack Centre, Digital Realty, and other players are expanding Nigeria data centres footprint
By 2030, Nigeria could have over 279.4 megawatts of data centre capacity Arizton, positioning Nigeria data centres as second only to South Africa on the continent.
Take Action: Join the Nigeria Data Centres Revolution
Nigeria data centres boom is happening right now, creating opportunities for developers, engineers, and tech professionals.
Whether you are looking to reduce hosting costs through Nigeria data centres, improve application performance, or build a career in cloud infrastructure, now is the time to act.
Start by:
- Evaluating your infrastructure costs and exploring Nigeria data centres alternatives
- Learning cloud technologies for Nigeria data centres through Kinplus Technologies
- Connecting with the tech community through Tech Linkup to stay informed about Nigeria data centres events
- Building projects that take advantage of Nigeria data centres lower latency and local data storage
Nigeria data centres infrastructure is being built. The opportunities are real. Will you be ready to take advantage of Nigeria data centres growth?
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About the Author: This article was researched and written to help Nigerian developers understand Nigeria data centres landscape and how it affects their careers.
