KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 2 (Bernama) -- The proposal to develop Tasik Kenyir as a large-scale data centre hub is not suitable to be implemented at this time, said the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI).
MITI said investors are currently still focused on strategic locations with a mature digital ecosystem and existing international connectivity. “Therefore, taking into account the critical factors of insufficient high-capacity telecommunications infrastructure and the absence of current market demand, the proposal to develop Tasik Kenyir as a large-scale data centre hub is not suitable to be implemented for now,” the ministry said in a reply on the parliament’s portal.
Touching on infrastructure aspects, MITI said the development of high-speed dedicated connectivity infrastructure is among the key challenges that must be addressed to realise Tasik Kenyir’s potential as an investment hub for data centres and artificial intelligence (AI).
Responding to the query from Datuk Ahmad Amzad Mohamed (Kuala Terengganu–PN) regarding the ministry’s commitment to realising Tasik Kenyir’s potential as a data centre and AI hub, MITI said that the operation of large-scale data centres, AI hubs and big data processing centres targeted by global technology companies requires higher connection speeds to handle intensive data traffic and real-time applications.
“The required fibre-optic connections typically start from speeds of 10 gigabits per second (Gbps), 40Gbps and 100Gbps. Currently, demand has grown to 400Gbps and up to 800Gbps. These requirements differ greatly from small-scale data centres, such as those for small and medium enterprises or educational institutions, which may only need speeds around 1Gbps,” the ministry added.
MITI also said that although there is fixed-line access and 4G coverage in the Tasik Kenyir area, the existing connectivity infrastructure still does not meet the capacity, speed and reliability (redundancy) required for global data centre operations involving large-scale data transfer and processing. “Therefore, the government proposes cooperation with the state government to conduct a site suitability study and a cost-benefit analysis on Tasik Kenyir as a data centre and AI hub in the future,” it added.
-- BERNAMA
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