Rack Centre powers new data hub with natural gas

Rack Centre, a carrier-neutral data centre operator, is set to power its new Lagos data hub with natural gas, a move aimed at reducing costs and improving energy efficiency.

The new Tier III data centre, known as LGS2, to be commissioned next week, expands the company’s footprint in West Africa, adding 3,240 square metres of white space and six data halls, each with a 2 MW IT load.

Rack Centre’s Chief Operating Officer, Ezekiel Egboye, said switching to natural gas offers more cost stability compared to diesel, which has been affected by price fluctuations.

“We all know how expensive diesel is, and its price is highly unstable. With gas, you increase savings—typically around 20 per cent—and it could go up to 25 per cent,” Egboye told reporters in Lagos.

The facility will also house four Meet-Me-Rooms, enhancing connectivity to international, regional, and local network service providers.

Rack Centre aims to maintain the lowest Power Usage Effectiveness rating in sub-Saharan Africa, a key metric for measuring data centre efficiency.

The company’s existing Lagos data centre has a PUE of 1.45, the lowest in the region, according to Egboye.

The new LGS2 facility is expected to achieve an even lower PUE of 1.35, comparable to global data centres in cooler climates that require less energy for cooling.

“Our PUE is proven, not just for marketing purposes. With LGS2, it’s going to be the lowest you can get, and that also translates into huge savings for our customers,” he said.

Rack Centre, which has operated for 12 years, is positioning itself as an environmentally responsible data centre operator, aligning its expansion with sustainability goals while reinforcing its role as a key player in Nigeria’s digital transformation.