HYPERSCALER. ENDECGROUP managing director William Johnson (2nd from left) and Tarlac Governor Susan Yap sign the lease contract agreement for the 47-hectare Narra Technology Park at Solaire North, Quezon City on Tuesday (June 11, 2024). The Narra Technology Park will house the country's largest data center with a capacity of 300 megawatts. (PNA photo by Kris M. Crismundo)
MANILA – ENDECGROUP, a Manila-based construction and engineering company, is investing USD2.7 billion (PHP158 billion) in a data center facility in Tarlac, which it said would put the Philippines in the global hyperscale map.
On Tuesday, ENDECGROUP and Narra Technology Park Development Inc. managing director William Johnson and Tarlac Governor Susan Yap signed the lease contract deal for the 47-hectare land within the New Clark City (NCC), where the Narra Technology Park will be located.
The Narra Technology Park will house a 300-megawatt hyperscale data center—the country’s largest data center facility, so far—that will be built in three phases at 100 MW each.
Johnson said during the contract signing in Quezon City Tuesday that the company is investing USD890 million in each phase, with the first 100-MW targeted to be operational in the fourth quarter of 2026.
The company is also investing around USD35 million for the site development.
“We expect the Narra Technology Park to put the Philippines on the map in the hyperscale data center market,” Johnson said, adding that the firm eyed the facility to host data centers of global information technology (IT) players.
He said since the operation of the data center consumes large power, the Narra Technology Park will use 100 percent clean energy.
The Narra Technology Park is expected to create more than 1,500 direct jobs, especially in IT operations, maintenance, and cybersecurity for the local communities.
“We selected NCC in Tarlac due to several factors. Firstly, the availability of large land parcels in the area allowed us to achieve the scale required for a project of this magnitude,” Johnson said.
“Secondly, NCC’s master-planned environment provided an ideal setting for the development of a modern hyperscale data center hub,” he said.
He said the location is also attractive with its proximity to Metro Manila, the Clark Freeport, and Clark International Airport.
The 47-hectare land is part of the 50-hectare parcel of land in NCC allocated by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) for the provincial government of Tarlac.
BCDA Vice President Ken Peralta said the Narra Technology Park will be located in the Clark Science City of the NCC.
The 9,450-hectare NCC is the BCDA’s flagship project envisioned to be the country’s first smart, green, and resilient metropolis. (PNA)
