T4 Group director David Simpson confirmed plans to build a tier 4 data centre in Southland, despite recent uncertainty surrounding the construction of the Datagrid data centre.
The group’s plan is to build New Zealand’s first sustainable tier 4 data centre, which will run off two power supplies, ensuring there is a 100% effective uptime and meaning it should never go down.
Mr Simpson said the work was well under way as they were negotiating land purchases and had developed several international partnerships.
Stage one of the project was expected to start between May and June — operation starting by the end of the year, he said.
He believed it would provide businesses and individuals with secure and sustainable data storage and processing.
“We’re thrilled to be bringing this level of security and uptime to the region, and the project will also be a New Zealand first as there are no other tier 4 data centres in the country.
“It’s wonderful to have this burgeoning industry in Southland, and even more incredible to have Datagrid’s journey take place alongside ours,” Mr Simpson said.
Last week, Meridian Energy voiced concerns over the multi-million Datagrid data centre still being built in Southland, after the departure of entrepreneur Remi Galasso from the company behind the project.
On Thursday, the Southland Chamber of Commerce and Great South released a statement which said retaining the Tiwai Smelter and hydrogen production was not an "either-or" scenario.
Both industries could co-exist and complement each other, the statement said.
The whole project was estimated to be completed by end of 2024, Mr Simpson said.
