In the digital era, data centers stand as crucial technological infrastructure, serving as the epicenter for data processing, storage, and management. Their significance has only grown with the explosion of data across various industries, making them instrumental in propelling technological innovation. In Indonesia, there’s a compelling forecast that the collective energy capacity of data center is poised to surge to 1.3 gigawatts (GW) over the next 8 to 9 years.
The Chairman of IDPRO, Hendra Suryakusuma, anchors this projection in the mounting count of data centers that are mushrooming year by year.
“In our nascent year of 2016, there were approximately six members operating at about 32 MW of power capacity. However, fast forward to this year, and we already boast roughly 14 members, wielding a cumulative power capacity of approximately 250 MW,” he affirmed.
This data center boom is being propelled by a triad of fundamental factors. First and foremost, it’s the unprecedented surge in internet penetration.
Drawing on statistics from the Association of Internet Service Providers in Indonesia (APJII), Hendra illuminates that internet users in Indonesia have swelled to a staggering 77%. Translated into numbers, of Indonesia’s vast populace of 275 million, nearly 200 million people have hopped onto the digital highway.
The second catalyst is the widespread embrace of digital transformation, an evolution not confined to the corporate giants but also permeating the SME landscape. According to Hendra, in today’s landscape, almost all small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) employing over 100 personnel have adopted digital workstreams.
“In a rather striking development, even the quaint street-side coffee vendors have welcomed digital technology, now accepting QRIS and various other online payment modes,” he emphasized.
Thirdly, the omnipresence of cloud computing is casting a profound influence on this data center upswing. Hendra underscores that there’s scarcely a fledgling company opting for on-premises servers to run their applications anymore; the paradigm has decisively shifted towards cloud computing. This phenomenon has even captured the attention of global heavyweights in cloud computing such as Google Cloud, Alibaba Cloud, Tencent Cloud, Amazon Web Services, and Microsoft Azure.
Of particular significance is the observation by the former Minister of the Ministry of Communication and Information (Kemenkominfo), Rudiantara, who shed light on the yawning gap between Indonesia’s current data center power capacity and the 2030 target, which stands at a lofty 22 billion watts.
In light of this, Hendra aptly underscores that the possession of a data center is not merely a choice but an obligatory step. “In other words, owning a data center is not a discretionary move; it’s become an imperative,” he firmly contends. This underscores the pivotal role data centers play in navigating the digital age’s ever-evolving landscape, both in Indonesia and globally.
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