Equinix Buys Australia’s Metronode for AU$1bn

US data centre operator Equinix has agreed to pay AU$1.035 billion (£590m) for Australia’s Metronode, which provides similar services for some of Australia’s largest organisations, in a deal expected to close in the first half of next year, the firms said on Monday.

The deal will see Equinix acquire all of Metronode’s communications infrastructure for government agencies, telecoms firms, IT services providers and private companies from the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan.

Metronode saw revenues of about A$60m in the 12 months up to 30 September 2017, Equinix said.

“The acquisition of Metronode helps Equinix to accelerate the expansion of our global footprint and support our customers in the region as they move their infrastructure to the edge, closer to their customers and partners,” said Equinix Asia-Pacific president Samuel Lee in a statement.

200 data centres around the world

The deal, which remains subject to regulatory approval, provides Equinix with 10 additional data centres and 80,000 square metres of land.

The addition of Metronode’s facilities in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra, and Brisbane is to bring the number of centres in Equinix’s International Business Exchange (IBX) up to 15 and means Equinix would have a total of 200 nodes in 52 markets, 40 of them in Asia-Pacific.

The new facilities represent about 20,000 additional square metres of collocation space, Equinix said.

The arrangement would also allow the US company to take advantage of Metronode’s established relationships with government agencies, including the government of New South Wales, for which it provides capacity for the GovDC programme in two data centres.

Equinix hosted an event in London as part of the capital’s Tech Week in June, where the firm highlighted the importance of connectivity.

The company expanded its UK footprint in February with the acquisition of IO UK’s data centre operating business in Slough.

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