President William Ruto today witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Kenya and the United Arab Emirates that will see the development in the country of the first-ever data centre powered by geothermal energy.

The agreement between Kenya’s EcoCloud and UAE’s G42 will see the construction of a 1GW mega data centre, thus propelling Kenya’s digital economy to greater heights.

“By harnessing geothermal energy, we are not only meeting the region’s data needs but also setting a new standard for eco-friendly infrastructure,” said Amos Siwoi, CEO of EcoCloud.

UAE Ambassador to Kenya Salim Ibrahim Binahmed Mohamed Alnaqbi also witnessed the signing ceremony at State House, Nairobi.

“This geothermal-powered data centre is a milestone towards realising Kenya’s potential as a global digital hub and fulfilling our mission of making intelligence accessible to everyone, everywhere,” said Peng Xiao, Group CEO of G24.

EcoCloud is a leading provider of data centre solutions, while G42 is a global leader in creating visionary artificial intelligence.

The project hopes to use Kenya’s vast untapped geothermal potential by putting up an initial 100MW facility, which will be scaled up over the years.

At full capacity, the facility will reduce Kenya’s dependency on fossil fuel, cut carbon emissions and contribute towards environmental conservation.