The 7,641 or so islands that comprise the Philippine archipelago gives rise to thousands of opportunities to reach out to every Filipino and the rest of the world. But it also opens up thousands of questions on where to place vital IT assets like data centers to ensure that data and connectivity is always available and on time.
Data centers play a key role in bridging the data from the provider to the consumers, the connectivity around the area, and the platforms and systems that run them.
In the Luzon landmass, data centers are present in the north, south and central (Metro Manila) and west. But noticeably, the eastern portion where Rizal province and certain portions of Quezon is amiss. Why?
Here are 3 reasons why the East of Luzon is a great location for data centers.
Population. According to the latest census, Rizal is the 5th most populous province1. This translates to a significant number of internet users, businesses including banks and retail, government entities and the skilled manpower to operate and maintain IT infrastructure. In the consumer front for example, more people mean more Netflix, Disney+ or Viva Max users in need of ultrafast access to rich content.
Economy. While Rizal is 5th in population, in terms of economics, it is actually second2 in terms of wealth, only bested by Cebu province. This statistic speaks of the volume of economic activity that must be supported by an IT infrastructure and in-region IT business opportunities that the population in the area deserves.
Geography.Contrary to unfounded perceptions, Rizal provinces and other outlying areas in the east of Luzon has numerous attributes that make it a strategic location for data centers, telco/ISP networks and other physical assets. The Sierra Madre Mountain range, for example, serve as a shield that dampens incoming typhoons. And while the region may have had its bad rep of floods, a huge chunk of the landmass sits on a high ridge plane, like in the case of Digital Halo data center that is located in an upland area that is 42 meters above sea level.
In terms of earthquakes, many have considered this area to be of low seismic activity (East Luzon Trough)3.
Volcanically, there are no active volcanoes in the area, and is a good distance away from active volcanoes like Taal, Mayon, Bulusan & Kanlaon.
The east of Luzon is also home to numerous power plants including the largest arrays of wind and solar power plants. And with just one major data center in the region (Digital Halo MNL1), it has access to more power capacity, including renewable energy.
The Philippines and the world in general is facing an insatiable demand for data centers and the other IT services that DCs support. While most providers have broken ground in the north, south, west and central regions of the Luzon landmass, it’s a shame that east of Luzon is left behind.
Thankfully, regional data center operators like Digital Halo have taken the bold step of servicing the underserved and untapped but strategic Eastern side and is just now providing data center services to businesses, telcos, ISPs, hyperscalers and public sector entities.
Just in time.
References:
1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Philippine_provinces_by_population
2 https://www.statista.com/statistics/1019019/wealthiest-provinces-philippines-by-asset-value/
