Equinix to Enter Africa with $350 Million MainOne Acquisition

Equinix to Enter Africa with $350 Million MainOne Acquisition

The all-cash deal is expected to close by Q1 2022.

Equinix Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX), a global interconnection and data company, announced on Tuesday it is expanding its presence in Africa with the acquisition of MainOne, a West African data center and connectivity solutions provider.

Under the terms of the agreements, Equinix will acquire MainOne and its assets in an all-cash transaction for an enterprise value of $320 million, excluding integration costs.

The two companies are now deciding on the customary closing conditions and are expecting to close the transaction by the first quarter of 2022.

“The acquisition of MainOne will represent a critical point of entry for Platform Equinix into the expansive and rapidly growing African market,” said Charles Meyers, President and CEO at Equinix.

Massive Infrastructure across West Africa

MainOne has a presence in Nigeria, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire and is one of the major digital infrastructure providers in West Africa. The company was founded in 2010 by Funke Opeke and now has three operational data centers with an additional one expected to be added in Q1 2022.

The closing of this acquisition will add more than 64,000 gross square feet of space to Platform Equinix, along with 570,000 square feet of land for future expansions. Additionally, MainOne also owns and operates a subsea network from Nigeria to Portugal and 1,200 kilometers of terrestrial fiber network across southern Nigeria.