MTN Group confirmed on 27 August 2026 that it has formed a new company in partnership with UAE-based investor Tarek Al Ashram to accelerate development of AI-ready digital infrastructure platforms across Africa. [S1] The new firm, Africa Data Hub Holding Limited, will serve as the platform for developing and scaling future digital infrastructure across key African markets, with an initial focus on South Africa and Nigeria. [S1]
MTN Digital Infrastructure's digital connectivity subsidiary Bayobab will provide open access connectivity and go-to-market support for the new platforms via its pan-African network, enabling customers to access digital infrastructure services across multiple markets. [S1] According to a Bloomberg report, MTN CEO Ralph Mupita said Africa Data Hub will take a phased approach, starting with a target AI data centre capacity of 150MW. [S1] Industry estimates put the potential cost of building 150MW of AI data centre capacity at between $3 billion and $6 billion, depending on technology, power infrastructure, location and scale of deployment. [S4]
MTN Group Digital Infrastructure CEO Mazen Mroué said the partnership represents an important milestone in MTN's Ambition 2030 strategy, noting that growing demand for cloud computing, AI workloads and data-intensive digital services across Africa will make access to resilient, scalable and locally hosted digital infrastructure increasingly critical to Africa's competitiveness and economic growth. [S1] "Realising this opportunity requires more than connectivity. It requires the infrastructure platforms that will power the next generation of digital services, businesses and innovation," Mroué said in a statement. [S1]
Partnership structure and investor background
Al Ashram has a track record across the Middle East as a data centre developer, operator and investor, to include founding UAE colocation provider Gulf Data Hub in 2011. [S1] Gulf Data Hub is backed by KKR & Co. [S4] Al Ashram will use his investment firm to back the newly formed Africa Data Hub Holding venture, according to a report by Bloomberg. [S4] MTN first mentioned plans for Africa Data Hub in its H1 2026 financial results released earlier that week, saying that the deal was made after the first-half reporting period. [S1] The report did not name Al Ashram, saying only that MTN was partnering with a "UAE-backed data centre investment platform". [S1]
Market context and infrastructure gap
Africa has more than 210 data centres, but most conventional facilities are designed primarily to host websites, applications, databases and cloud workloads. [S4] AI data centres are built around high-performance computing systems capable of training and running AI models. [S4] Africa still accounts for less than one percent of global AI data centre capacity, according to World Economic Forum data cited in reports on the MTN-Al Ashram partnership. [S4] Mastercard estimates that Africa's AI market could grow from about $4.5 billion in 2025 to $16.5 billion by 2030. [S4]
Implementation challenges and strategic significance
A 150MW AI data centre network would require a substantial and reliable power supply, making MTN's ongoing negotiations for power agreements a critical part of the project. [S4] AI computing is highly power-intensive, and facilities cannot afford the prolonged outages that remain common across many African markets. [S4] This could make energy partnerships, captive power, renewable energy and battery storage central to the project's economics. [S4] MTN has already started preparing for the buildout by acquiring land and negotiating power agreements, according to Mupita. [S4] The data centre strategy marks another step in MTN's attempt to reduce its dependence on traditional telecom revenue. [S4] The planned 150MW capacity is likely to be only the beginning; MTN has said future expansion will depend on demand. [S4]
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