Airtel’s $150M Kenya Data Centre Now Targets July 2027 Launch
August 10th 2026
The facility is designed around 44 megawatts of power capacity, delivered in two 22MW phases, and will be built to support high-density, GPU-ready infrastructure aimed at powering AI and cloud workloads across East Africa.
Airtel Kenya has adjusted the completion timeline for its $150 million Nxtra data centre in Tatu City, shifting the target launch from early 2027 to July 2027, the company’s Managing Director Djibril Tobe confirmed this week.
Speaking on the project’s progress, Tobe said construction is advancing steadily on what is expected to become East Africa’s largest data centre by capacity, roughly ten times the size of any facility currently operating in the region. Airtel broke ground on the site in September 2025, and the revised timeline reflects the scope of the build as it moves through its next phases.
The facility is designed around 44 megawatts of power capacity, delivered in two 22MW phases, and will be built to support high-density, GPU-ready infrastructure aimed at powering AI and cloud workloads across East Africa. According to Tobe, several global technology companies, including Google and Microsoft, are already in discussions about hosting services on the platform once it becomes operational, though no partnerships have been formally announced.
Located within Tatu City’s Special Economic Zone, the data centre will draw power from a dedicated 135MVA substation, with on-site solar generation supplementing the supply. The project forms part of a broader push to position Kenya as a leading digital and AI infrastructure hub in the region, as demand for cloud and data services continues to grow across East Africa.
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