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Asia Pacific & Japan (APJ) hyperscale data centre specialist, AirTrunk has commenced operations in Malaysia, following the official opening of its flagship Malaysian 150 megawatt (MW) hyperscale data centre in Johor Bahru, named AirTrunk JHB1 (JHB1). 

The company held an official opening event attended by Malaysian and Australian government officials and key AirTrunk partners, including Malaysia’s Deputy Minister for the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry, YB Tuan Liew Chin Tong; Chairman of Johor State Investment, Trade and Consumer Affairs Committee, YB Tuan Lee Ting Han; and Australia’s High Commissioner to Malaysia, Her Excellency Ms Danielle Heinecke. Also in attendance were distinguished guests from the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation, Malaysian Investment Development Authority, Invest Johor, Iskandar Regional Development Authority, Iskandar Puteri City Council, the Malaysia Communications and Multimedia Commission and Tenaga Nasional Berhad. 

The initial phases of JHB1 will provide over 50MW of capacity for its large technology customers. The development was completed in over 4 million work hours with no major safety incidents, reinforcing AirTrunk’s company-wide commitment to upholding the highest levels of safety at its construction sites. 

Spanning over 10.3 hectares, JHB1 is strategically located in Johor Bahru at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. Servicing a major cloud availability zone, the data centre offers strong domestic and international connection to regional technology hubs including neighbouring Singapore, with an end-to-end cross border connection strategy.

Along with its industry-low design Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of 1.15, making it one of the most efficient data centres in the country, the new state-of-the-art facility features an AI-ready design with AirTrunk’s first deployment of direct-to-chip liquid cooling technology alongside traditional indirect evaporative cooling (IEC) and high-density racks. This pioneering approach reduces energy consumption by up to 23 per cent. The company launched its liquid cooling approach in July 2024, following five years in research and development.

With a focus on accelerating the energy transition and supporting energy reliability, AirTrunk worked with Malaysian utility company Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) to connect JHB1. This follows an MOU with TNB signed in 2023 that will see the two companies advance the energy transition in the region.

Earlier this year, AirTrunk also announced the first renewable energy Virtual Power Purchase Agreement for a data centre for 30MW of renewable energy, with developer ib vogt, under Malaysia’s Corporate Green Power Programme. The allocation was the maximum available for an individual developer with a secured offtaker. JHB1 is also equipped with a solar ready roof, able to provide over 1MW of power for this phase, making it one of the largest onsite solar deployments for a data centre in Southeast Asia. 

AirTrunk Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Robin Khuda said: “The rapid and safe delivery of JHB1 is a pivotal step in the adoption of AI in Malaysia and AirTrunk’s growth as a trusted partner for our customers in the APJ region.

“With a commitment to innovation and sustainable growth, combined with a program of investment in energy availability and renewable electricity, Malaysia is fast becoming a key tech hub in the Asia Pacific & Japan region. Through our long-term investment in Malaysia, we are able to support our customers as they grow at speed and implement groundbreaking solutions like liquid cooling, at scale, in order to catalyse sustainable cloud and AI development.”

AirTrunk’s Head of Malaysia, Pei Jet Lim said: “AirTrunk is making a positive contribution to the local economy through supporting and developing local talent and delivering critical digital infrastructure. The new data centre supports the rapid growth of cloud and AI in Malaysia and aligns with the MADANI Government’s initiative to establish AI hubs in the country. We are making a long-term commitment to further engage with the local community to build a full AI ecosystem in Malaysia. The long term and predictable demand from JHB1 also provides the stability to underpin investment in the energy grid and initiate multiple green energy developments.”  

JHB1 is part of AirTrunk’s leading Asia Pacific & Japan data centre platform of 11 centres offering more than 1.4 gigawatts (GW) of total capacity to support increasing demand from global tier one technology companies in the region. 

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