{"id":3872,"date":"2025-10-16T12:31:24","date_gmt":"2025-10-16T09:31:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/?p=3872"},"modified":"2025-10-16T12:31:24","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T09:31:24","slug":"weekly-news-blast-16th-october-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/weekly-news-blast-16th-october-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Weekly News Blast – 16th October 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"
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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
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Industry News<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Industry News<\/strong><\/h3>\n

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

Khazna announces 1GW expansion plans<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Khazna Data Centers, the UAE\u2019s largest data centre provider, has announced a major expansion plan to add over 1GW of operational capacity across the Middle East and Europe within five years. This includes 400MW in key markets such as Saudi Arabia, Italy, and Egypt. Domestically, new hyperscale projects are underway in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Ajman. Backed by a $2.6Bn financing deal from ADCB and First Abu Dhabi Bank, Khazna is also developing a 1GW site near Milan in partnership with Eni. CEO Hassan Alnaqbi emphasised the company\u2019s role in building AI-ready infrastructure to support digital transformation globally\u2026Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

UAE<\/u><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Department of Commerce issues export licences for Nvidia chips<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The US has granted Nvidia export licenses for chip shipments to the UAE, following delays that had frustrated Nvidia executives and former Trump administration officials. The approvals, reportedly worth several billion dollars, were secured after the UAE committed to reciprocal investments in the US. This move follows a broader regional AI push, including Saudi Arabia\u2019s Humain purchasing 18,000 Nvidia GB300 chips to support 500MW of data centres, with more planned. The announcement aligns with major UAE-US initiatives, such as a new AI campus in Abu Dhabi. The decision marks a shift in US policy, which had previously restricted chip exports to the region over security concerns\u2026Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Alibaba Cloud launches second data centre in Dubai<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Alibaba Cloud has launched its second data centre in Dubai, nine years after its first, as part of a broader $53Bn global investment plan to expand cloud and AI services. The move reflects the UAE\u2019s growing role as a regional AI hub, with major investments and partnerships, including a new AI campus in collaboration with Nvidia and OpenAI. While Alibaba strengthens ties in the region, partnering with firms like Wio Bank, concerns remain over US security, particularly regarding Chinese access to advanced semiconductors through third-party nations like the UAE\u2026Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

MGX consortium buys $40Bn US data centre company<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

A consortium including UAE tech investor MGX, BlackRock’s AI Infrastructure Partnership (AIP), and Global Infrastructure Partners has agreed to acquire U.-based Aligned Data Centers from Macquarie for $40Bn. The deal, expected to close in the first half of 2026, marks one of the largest data infrastructure investments to date. Aligned, headquartered in Texas, operates 78 data centres across 50 campuses, with expansion plans in the US and South America. This move strengthens MGX\u2019s global AI and data infrastructure footprint, building on past investments in Aligned and Yondr Group, and follows its participation in the $30Bn Global AI Infrastructure Investment Partnership\u2026Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Interesting News<\/strong><\/h2>\n

G42 to launch sovereign AI in France<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

UAE-based AI company G42 is set to launch its sovereign AI cloud in France in the coming months, as part of its global expansion strategy to enhance international supercomputing capabilities. The project, under G42\u2019s \u201cAI Factories Antennas\u201d initiative, is being led by subsidiary Core42, which has already deployed infrastructure in Grenoble. G42 is also rolling out advanced computing infrastructure in five US locations and pursuing projects across Africa, Southeast Asia, and upcoming markets like Kazakhstan, Malaysia, and Indonesia, demonstrating surging global demand for its AI and supercomputing solutions\u2026Read more<\/a><\/p>","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 Industry News Middle East Khazna announces 1GW expansion plans Khazna Data Centers, the UAE\u2019s<\/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-3872","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\/3872","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=3872"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3872\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3873,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3872\/revisions\/3873"}],"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=3872"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3872"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gulfdca.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3872"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}