In the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region in Northwest China, the expansion of a vast complex of data and cloud computing centers is currently in progress at Zhongwei Industrial Park, which serves as a base for the industry, according to The Xinhua News Agency’s report.
The complex, which has a surface area of approximately 3,530 hectares, was designed and built by the China First Metallurgical Group Co., Ltd. It will be among the eight largest integrated big data centers in China.
1,500 servers are running at peak speed day and night on rays of racks two meters high in the computer room of the No. 1 building of the facility that China Unicom has rented.
According to Wang Jiaying, an employee of China Unicom in charge of the room’s equipment maintenance, to ensure that the machinery can operate continuously, they maintain the workshop’s temperature at 23°C and humidity at 30%.
Zhongwei, a city with a 2,500-year history, is situated on the Tengger Desert and Yellow River boundaries. Agriculture used to be a major component of its economy.
The local government accelerated the use of the local resources of green energy and desert land to build a national-level data and cloud computing center after businesses like Amazon and the MCC Meili Cloud Computing Industry Investment Co., Ltd. established their operation centers in the city in 2013 and 2016, respectively.
The national goal of shifting some data, cloud computing, and data integration infrastructures to China’s western regions is in line with the city’s policy supporting cloud computing companies.
In turn, the emerging cloud computing industry cluster can assist the city in establishing itself as a frontrunner in the digital economy.
Yang Sichao, an investment executive with Hotwon Group, stated that Zhongwei has a favorable overall investment environment and incurs minimal operating expenses. They have decided to open their branch in the city as a result. The business develops sustainable data ecosystems and offers data center solutions in China..
At the moment, the cloud computing base is home to seven specialist computing companies and 200 connected businesses. Zhongwei has also contributed more than ¥10 billion (or $1.43 billion) to the growth and expansion of the base.
According to local officials, the base’s operational capacity is anticipated to support 700,000 servers, with a 20% annual capacity expansion.
“We can work for 90% of big data and cloud computing companies across the country”, – said Mai Yanzhou, vice chairman of the regional government of Ningxia.
Furthermore, Ningxia also offers a wealth of renewable energy resources, with ocean-blue photovoltaic fields serving as its distinctive geographical signature. This is advantageous for the growth of the cloud computing industry.
“By 2025, the utilization rate of renewable energy is expected to reach 65% in Ningxia. Currently, Zhongwei has already seen its utilization rate of renewable energy exceeding 97.6%”, – said Hao Liuhu, deputy director of the region’s development and reform commission.
