Cloud and carrier-neutral data centre, colocation and interconnection solutions provider Digital Realty has completed the acquisition of a majority interest in colocation data centres and interconnection platforms Teraco Data Environments from a consortium of investors, including Berkshire Partners and Permira.

With the acquisition, Teraco will be known as Teraco: A Digital Realty Company.

The acquisition of Teraco enables Digital Realty to add South Africa to its portfolio of three markets on the continent, namely Kenya, Mozambique and Nigeria.

“We are very excited to complete this transformative transaction that positions Digital Realty as the premier data centre and connectivity provider on the high-growth African continent,” says Digital Realty CEO A. William Stein.

“[This] milestone gives us significant regional scale and access to a premier, high-quality portfolio in Africa’s largest market, enhancing our ability to serve growing customer demand for connectivity in the region. We are thrilled to strengthen our global platform and deepen our commitment to investing in Africa as we capitalise on the tremendous opportunity in the region.”

The strategic importance of these four markets has been enhanced by the recent and ongoing implementation of new subsea cable networks encircling Africa.

Combined with Digital Realty’s highly connected facilities, clients now have access to a choice of strategic connectivity and interconnection platforms that serve all corners of the African market.

“Teraco has made significant progress in achieving our strategic objectives, including improving the connectivity and accessibility of our data centres, in supporting the rapid digital transformation in the region,” says Teraco CEO Jan Hnizdo.

“Africa is poised to remain a high growth, high-demand area for data centre solutions. Our combined, diversified platform will further enable us to support our customers in the pan-Africa region and worldwide.”

Teraco supports the rapid growth of the continent’s Internet community through its expanding portfolio of data centres.

“Teraco’s experienced management team, growing multi-national client base, quality infrastructure and ownership of NAPAfrica, the continent's largest Internet Exchange Point, are key differentiators that position the company for sustainable growth.”