Many challenges when building regional data centers

A data center consumes a huge amount of electricity, requiring a stable electrical infrastructure, reliable supply and backup systems.

The People's Committee of Dak Lak province has just proposed to the Ministry of Information and Communications to add the content "Building and developing a regional multi-purpose data center of the Central Highlands located in Buon Ma Thuot city" to the draft Planning of Dak Lak province to 2025, with a vision to 2030. The proposal is based on the draft Planning of the Information and Communications sector's infrastructure, with the content of forming clusters of regional multi-purpose data centers (regional-scale data centers), serving socio-economic activities and activities of state agencies.

According to the draft, regional data centers (TTDL) will be located in the Northern Midlands and Mountains; Mekong Delta; Central Highlands; Southeast; North Central and Central Coast; Red River Delta. A regional TTDL is built towards synchronizing data in the region, operating according to the process from collecting and storing data to serving analysis, evaluation, then sharing information and supporting decision making for socio-economic development. When building a regional TTDL, the regional economy will be promoted.

On September 29, the Workshop on Building a Regional Data Center was organized by Viettel Enterprise Solutions Corporation in Buon Ma Thuot to discuss and share difficulties and find solutions for the national plan.

Workshop on Building Regional Data Center organized by Viettel Enterprise Solutions Corporation in Buon Ma Thuot.

Speaking at the workshop, Mr. Le Thanh Cong, Deputy General Director of Viettel Solutions, emphasized that the selection of an area to build a regional data center is based on four factors.

Firstly, strategic location, ensuring convenience in transportation and logistics. Secondly, must ensure natural safety and territorial security to ensure data safety and security.

Third is the power infrastructure. A data center consumes a large amount of power, requiring a stable power infrastructure, a reliable supply, and a backup system. Fourth is the human resources and economic development of the area to serve the data center.

According to this expert, it will be difficult to operate TTDL in the future and cause additional costs if local human resources cannot be used.

Regarding the Central Highlands, the Deputy General Director of Viettel Solutions assessed that this is an area with very good power infrastructure, a convenient location to connect with major cities. In addition, Vietnamese telecommunications enterprises such as Viettel have built a large number of fiber optic cable stations, connecting in Binh Dinh and Da Nang areas, creating a strong enough telecommunications infrastructure for the region.

Vietnam has many favorable factors for developing regional tourism centers. First of all, it is a strategic location in Southeast Asia, close to major economic centers of the region, located on the main axis of the East-West economic corridor. This location is considered favorable in terms of connectivity as well as investment in building additional fiber optic cables.

Vietnam also possesses a quality IT workforce with competitive costs in the region. In addition, domestic enterprises are actively investing in expanding and building their own data centers. These advantages take place in the context of the Government and the Ministry of Information and Communications issuing strong policies and directions to promote the development of data centers in Vietnam.

However, the challenge that Vietnam faces when building a regional tourism market is first of all the large investment. It is not only the initial investment cost, but also includes the later costs, when having to continue investing in institutions, policies, mechanisms to attract businesses, operating costs, etc.

The second is the issue of management and compliance, reflected in the construction of a legal corridor, to ensure that the data center operates reliably and safely.

And although human resources are mentioned as a favorable factor, it is also a challenge when building a TTDL requires finding and maintaining high-quality IT human resources in areas far from economic centers.

Returning to the Central Highlands, the issue of attracting and retaining talent is what managers need to find solutions to develop regional tourism here.

Southeast Asia's data center market is expected to 'explode' in the next 5 years. Southeast Asia's data center business is expected to outpace the rest of the world in the next 5 years, to meet the region's exploding demand for data.

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