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UAE’s DAMAC Boosts Investment in Saudi Data Centers

Hussain Sajwani, Chairman of the Board of Directors of DAMAC. (DAMAC)
Hussain Sajwani, Chairman of the Board of Directors of DAMAC. (DAMAC)
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UAE’s DAMAC Boosts Investment in Saudi Data Centers

Hussain Sajwani, Chairman of the Board of Directors of DAMAC. (DAMAC)
Hussain Sajwani, Chairman of the Board of Directors of DAMAC. (DAMAC)

Hussain Sajwani, Chairman of the Board of Directors of DAMAC, said that the group’s investment in data centers in Saudi Arabia came after an extensive study of the Saudi market, which offered many promising investment opportunities within the framework of Vision 2030.

In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Sajwani pointed to the Kingdom’s developed infrastructure, which allows quick access to undersea cable systems, making it one of the most connected countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council on both the local and international levels.

“Saudi Arabia’s national fiber optic network provides terrestrial connectivity to all major Gulf markets, and is a gateway to the main regional submarine cable unloading stations,” he said.

Sajwani noted that the idea of investing in data centers in general dates back to 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“After I conducted many consultations with specialized analysts and the work team, we began to develop plans and strategies for investing in data centers… In 2021, we obtained a piece of land in Dammam and began establishing a data center there,” he recounted.

Regarding DAMAC’s future plans, the chairman said that the group was seeking to establish two data centers in Dammam and Riyadh with a total capacity of 35 megawatts.

“We have already started building the Dammam Center, which is expected to be ready by the fourth quarter of this year. At an initial stage, the capacity of each center will reach 5 megawatts by the end of 2023, and will be raised again by adding another 5 megawatts for each center in the last quarter of 2024,” Sajwani told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“The total data capacity of the two centers is expected to reach 55 megawatts in 2025,” he added.

The Emirati businessman stressed that Damac’s data centers in Riyadh and Dammam will support Vision 2030, by providing a basis for digital transformation and local and regional innovation.

He revealed that the volume of his group’s investments in data centers in Saudi Arabia amounted to about $600 million and constituted 60 percent of the total volume of DAMAC’s investments in data centers.

Saudi Arabia has been witnessing “a tremendous development in the field of investment, through an ambitious youth vision led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to enhance investment opportunities and attract investors from all over the world,” Sajwani emphasized.

He continued: “This growth is the result of the great efforts made by the government to transform the Kingdom into an attractive economic environment for foreign investments, which encouraged many international companies to open regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia.”

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Bank of England Cuts Main Interest Rate by a Quarter-point to 4.75%

Bank of England Deputy Governor for Monetary Policy Clare Lombardelli, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, The Bank of England's Head of Media and Stakeholder Engagement Katie Martin and Deputy Governor, Markets and Banking, Dave Ramsden hold the central bank's Monetary Policy Report press conference at the Bank of England, in London, on November 7, 2024. HENRY NICHOLLS/Pool via REUTERS
Bank of England Deputy Governor for Monetary Policy Clare Lombardelli, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, The Bank of England's Head of Media and Stakeholder Engagement Katie Martin and Deputy Governor, Markets and Banking, Dave Ramsden hold the central bank's Monetary Policy Report press conference at the Bank of England, in London, on November 7, 2024. HENRY NICHOLLS/Pool via REUTERS
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Bank of England Cuts Main Interest Rate by a Quarter-point to 4.75%

Bank of England Deputy Governor for Monetary Policy Clare Lombardelli, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, The Bank of England's Head of Media and Stakeholder Engagement Katie Martin and Deputy Governor, Markets and Banking, Dave Ramsden hold the central bank's Monetary Policy Report press conference at the Bank of England, in London, on November 7, 2024. HENRY NICHOLLS/Pool via REUTERS
Bank of England Deputy Governor for Monetary Policy Clare Lombardelli, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, The Bank of England's Head of Media and Stakeholder Engagement Katie Martin and Deputy Governor, Markets and Banking, Dave Ramsden hold the central bank's Monetary Policy Report press conference at the Bank of England, in London, on November 7, 2024. HENRY NICHOLLS/Pool via REUTERS

The Bank of England cut its main interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point on Thursday after inflation across the UK fell below its target rate of 2%.
The bank said its rate-setting panel lowered the benchmark rate to 4.75% — its second cut in three months — though its governor Andrew Bailey cautioned that interest rates would not be falling too fast over coming months.
“We need to make sure inflation stays close to target, so we can’t cut interest rates too quickly or by too much,” he said. “But if the economy evolves as we expect it’s likely that interest rates will continue to fall gradually from here.”
In the year to September, UK inflation stood at 1.7%, its lowest level since April 2021 and below the central bank’s target rate of 2%, The Associated Press reported.
Central banks worldwide dramatically increased borrowing costs from near zero during the coronavirus pandemic when prices started to shoot up, first as a result of supply chain issues built up and then because of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine which pushed up energy costs.
As inflation rates have recently fallen from multi-decade highs, the central banks have started cutting interest rates.
Economists have warned that worries about the future path of prices following last week's tax-raising budget from the new Labour government and the economic impact of US President-elect Donald Trump may limit the number of cuts next year.
The decision comes a week after Treasury chief Rachel Reeves announced around 70 billion pounds ($90 billion) of extra spending, funded through increased business taxes and borrowing. Economists think that the splurge, coupled with the prospect of businesses cushioning the tax hikes by raising prices, could lead to higher inflation next year.
The rate decision also comes a day after Trump was declared the winner of the US presidential election. He has indicated that he will cut taxes and introduce tariffs on certain imported goods when he returns to the White House in January. Both policies have the potential to be inflationary both in the US and globally, thereby prompting Bank of England policymakers to keep interest rates higher than initially planned.