{"id":3805,"date":"2025-08-21T11:30:58","date_gmt":"2025-08-21T08:30:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/?p=3805"},"modified":"2025-08-21T09:19:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T06:19:09","slug":"weekly-news-blast-21st-august-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/weekly-news-blast-21st-august-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Weekly News Blast – 21st August 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n
\"\"<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Welcome to the GDCA Weekly News Blast! Check out the latest industry news from the GCC region below. Have any Middle East data centres news you\u2019d like to share? Email yours to imogen@gulfdca.com<\/a> with NEWS<\/strong> in the subject line.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Industry News<\/strong><\/div>\n

Saudi Arabia<\/u><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Center3 targets 1GW of data centre capacity by 2030<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Saudi data centre operator Center3, a subsidiary of stc, has unveiled a $10Bn investment plan as it targets 1GW of data centre capacity by 2030. The company, which already claims to have spent $3Bn on its existing infrastructure, currently operates and develops around 20 data centres across Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, aiming to reach 300MW by 2027. Center3 is positioning itself to support AI, cloud, and hyperscale workloads, hosting major cloud providers such as Oracle and Huawei, and recently partnered with local developer DataVolt. CEO Fahad AlHajeri emphasised that the expansion will lay the foundation for the region\u2019s digital economy and global innovation leadership\u2026Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Humain drives Kingdom\u2019s $77Bn AI infrastructure push<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Saudi Arabia\u2019s national AI company Humain, backed by the Public Investment Fund, is pressing ahead with one of the world\u2019s largest planned AI infrastructure projects, targeting 6.6GW of compute capacity by 2034 at an estimated cost of $77Bn. The Kingdom is leveraging cheap electricity, strategic partnerships, and eased US chip-export restrictions to build a global AI hub, while also launching a $10Bn venture fund. Analysts note that domestic demand may initially lag behind the scale of the buildout, suggesting Saudi Arabia could become an exporter of computing power as part of its Vision 2030 diversification strategy. The recent search for Head of Data Centre Estates highlights Humain\u2019s push from strategy to execution\u2026Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Oman<\/u><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Ooredoo inaugurates a new data centre and cable landing station in Salalah<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Ooredoo has inaugurated a new data centre and cable landing station in Salalah (Oman), marking a significant step in the Sultanate\u2019s digital transformation. The facility, the first of its kind in Southern Oman, opens with 125 racks and will expand to 500, combining world-class data centre services with international connectivity. Ooredoo says the project will drive economic diversification, attract global digital investment, and enable cloud and AI innovation, strengthening Oman\u2019s position as a regional digital hub. The Salalah site complements Ooredoo\u2019s other data centres in Barka and Sohar, and ties into major subsea cable systems, including 2Africa, reinforcing the country\u2019s role in the global digital economy\u2026Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Middle East<\/u><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Could the Gulf be in line for potential benefits from Trump\u2019s Nvidia-China deal?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The White House\u2019s recent revenue-sharing deal with Nvidia and AMD, allowing limited sales of next-gen AI chips to China, signals a more flexible US approach to global semiconductor exports. While it doesn\u2019t directly affect pending Gulf agreements for advanced chips, the move reduces friction in US-China tech relations, benefiting Gulf nations racing to develop AI hubs. Analysts say the deal sets a precedent for future US licensing frameworks, potentially shaping how Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar access AI infrastructure while balancing security and commercial interests\u2026Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

AI adoption rises in Turkey, but trust and strategic deployment lag<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

AI is emerging as the top near-term investment priority for companies in Turkey, according to a recent Twentify study commissioned by DE-CIX. Nearly half of technology leaders expect AI to dominate the business landscape over the next 5 years, with 43% planning immediate investments. While adoption is growing \u2013 45% already use AI in business processes \u2013 only 2% leverage it strategically at scale. Reliable connectivity, strong data security, and technical support are key for AI deployment, as Turkey\u2019s AI market is projected to reach $2.01Bn in 2025 and expand to $8.15Bn by 2031. The country is also seeing increased investment in AI infrastructure, including new data centres by Khazna and Equinix. As investment surges, will businesses be able to fully harness AI despite lingering doubts about its reliability?…Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Welcome to the GDCA Weekly News Blast! Check out the latest industry news from the GCC region below. Have any Middle East data centres news you\u2019d like to share? Email yours to imogen@gulfdca.com with NEWS in the subject line. Industry News Saudi Arabia Center3 targets 1GW of data centre capacity by 2030 Saudi data centre<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1572,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3805","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-weekly-news-blast"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3805","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3805"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3805\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3807,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3805\/revisions\/3807"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1572"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3805"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3805"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3805"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}