Saigon Asset Management seeks to develop a data centre hub in southern Vietnam with an estimated investment of as much as US$1.5 billion ($2.02 billion), it said in a release.
The 150-megawatt hub will be developed in stages with the first facility expected to be operational within two years, said Louis Nguyen, CEO of the Ho Chi Minh City-based US private equity firm focusing on areas from AI to education.
It is looking for investors, including local banks with possible debt financing, and businesses to participate in the project, he said.
The government in 2022 issued a decree requiring foreign tech companies to store user data in the Southeast Asian country. Last year, it ordered foreign social media platforms to verify the accounts of users and provide their identifies to authorities on demand.
Previously, companies in Vietnam moved data to Singapore, Louis said. Now, he added, “they need to come back to Vietnam based on this privacy law, the enforcement of it. So that’s a big book of business”.
He estimates that there are about 200 megawatts of data centres in Vietnam, with a need for another 200 megawatts in coming years to meet the demand from foreign companies.
See also: Microsoft cancelling leases for AI data centres, signalling potential oversupply: TD Cowen
The firm expects a fourth quarter close to the first tranche of a US$300 million fund to back its data centre project, it said.
Saigon Asset Management is collaborating with Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park to secure 50 hectares of land in the southern province of Binh Duong for the data centre.
It is also working with government officials to secure power, especially renewable energy, for the project, Louis said.
