SK Ecoplant Co. has entered into a partnership with data center developer and operator GDS to jointly enter the Southeast Asian data center market.
As part of the deal, SK said that it will supply fuel cells to GDS to ensure a stable power supply for the data centers built and run by China’s top data center operator. SK Ecoplant Chief Executive Park Kyung-il said:
“Our strategic partnership with GDS will serve as a cornerstone for us to expand our business overseas, particularly in the Southeast Asian market.”
As per the agreement, SK Ecoplant will provide eco-friendly power supply solutions, including engineering, procurement and construction (EPS) of fuel cell systems to GDS’ data centers. Established in 2000, Shanghai-headquartered GDS is China’s largest data center development and operation company.
GDS controls more than 20% of the Chinese data center market and counts Chinese and global companies as its clients, including Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent as well as Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Morgan Stanley. SK Ecoplant, formerly known as SK Engineering & Construction Co., has chosen data centers as its new focus area, and has articulated its go-to-market strategy accordingly.
