Philippine ecozones poised to capture data centre expansion, WTCA says
The World Trade Center Association says Philippine economic zones that combine infrastructure, incentives and investment support are well-placed to attract data centre investment. The recent lifting of the moratorium on new IT park applications in Metro Manila could also drive growth.
Philippine economic zones could capture data centre expansion investment amid growing global demand, the World Trade Center Association (WTCA) said on Tuesday.
“Free zones that can provide the right combination of infrastructure, incentives, and investment support are exceptionally well-positioned to attract this global industry,” Scott Wang, WTCA vice-president, Asia-Pacific, said in a statement.
The Philippine Economic Zone Authority’s growing portfolio of information technology (IT) parks and specialised centres could potentially attract high-value tech investments, the WTCA said. Data centres house computer systems needed to store and process large amounts of data. Global demand for data centres is driven by growing adoption of AI, cloud computing and digital commerce.
Global supply bottlenecks in data centres pose opportunities for Philippine ecozone developers in hubs in Cavite, Laguna, Bulacan and Clark, the WTCA added. It said the recent lifting of the moratorium on new IT park and IT centre applications in Metro Manila could also bring in more data centre investment.
The WTCA said a “tri-ecosystem” approach would help connect data centre investors with suitable locations. “The WTCA network connects developers directly to hyperscalers and capital sources, free zone incentives lower construction and equipment costs, and ready infrastructure shortens time to deployment,” it said.
The Philippines is part of the WTCA’s global network through World Trade Center Metro Manila in Pasay City. “The organization is looking at how that network can extend beyond its Metro Manila home to support emerging economic zone opportunities,” the WTCA said.
It noted that data centres can help Philippine property firms and ecozone operators increase the value of their developments. “Beyond traditional IT-BPO office spaces and standard logistics warehouses, data centers offer developers the highest value-added return per square meter,” it said. At present, the Philippines’ data centre capacity is at 200 megawatts and could hit 1 gigawatt (GW) by year’s end. Data centre operators’ plans remain on target, the Department of Information and Communications Technology has said.
