Chris Thorpe (Leading Edge Data Centres)
Leading Edge Data Centres has launched the latest facility in its regional Australian rollout, this time in Albury-Wodonga.
Serving the greater Riverina region, on the border between NSW and Victoria, the scalable and secure Tier III data centre is expected to reduce network latency and increase internet speeds, with Leading Edge DC investing $7 million into the facility.
“We are thrilled to launch the Albury-Wodonga data centre, providing more choice for local consumers and businesses when it comes to high-speed internet and direct cloud connectivity,” said Leading Edge DC CEO Chris Thorpe.
“It’s more important than ever before for our metropolitan and regional communities to be digitally connected with equivalent capabilities.”
As seen at the start of Leading Edge DC’s data centre rollout, the Albury-Wodonga facility utilises technology from Schneider Electric, with the vendor providing prefabricated data centre modules.
“The opening of this new data centre in the Riverina region will provide the digital infrastructure needed for Australians for generations to come,” said Schneider Electric vice president of segments and secure power Joe Craparotta.
“Schneider’s Tier III certified edge data centres have been designed and constructed in line with Chris Thorpe and [Leading Edge DC's] vision. They are built for Australian conditions, designed for regional locations with both sustainability and greater direct cloud access as a priority.”
The data centre has also been considered as an “important milestone” for the region, according to Albury City mayor Kylie King.
“This new facility will give existing businesses more options for innovation and growth, whilst enhancing our attractiveness as an investment location,” she said.
“It will bring us up to speed with capital cities like Sydney and Melbourne and allow us to operate more effectively in a global market.”
Leading Edge DC’s data centre roll-out started in Newcastle, NSW, with its construction lasting from August 2020 to February 2021.
That particular data centre integrated technology from Cisco and Megaport, as well as Schneider Electric.
Its second centre meanwhile was located in Tamworth and opened its doors in November 2021 and its third facility, based in Dubbo, opened a month later.
In total, the data centre operator has 26 regional facilities planned, with future locations including Wagga, Coffs Harbour and Bathurst in NSW and Shepparton, Bendigo, Ballarat, Geelong, Traralgon, Horsham and Mildura in Victoria.
In May this year, it also secured a $30 million equity investment from DigitalBridge Group for its rollout.
