United Arab Emirates Data Center Market - Investment Analysis & Growth Opportunities 2025-2030

INDUSTRY OUTLOOK

The UAE data center market size will witness investments of USD 3.33 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 17.64% during the forecast period. The region is recognized as one of the leading and most developed data center destinations in the Middle East. In 2024, data center operators in the UAE accounted for approximately 30% of the total power capacity added by data center operators across the Middle East region.

The significant growth of the UAE data center market can be attributed to the rapidly evolving cloud computing landscape, ongoing digital transformation initiatives, and the strategic geographic location of the UAE as a connectivity hub between Asia, Africa, and Europe. Furthermore, Dubai and Abu Dhabi are two of the major smart cities in the country and internationally. The presence of these smart cities makes the country a major market for the development of data centers. Moreover, the UAE is set to maintain its leadership in the digital economy of the Middle East, serving as a crucial gateway for businesses aiming to expand in the region and beyond. The UAE data center market is expected to grow during the forecast period, driven by the strategic location, advanced digital infrastructure, and supportive government initiatives of the country.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

1. The number of third-party data center facilities in the UAE is gradually growing, with a good start. The UAE is an established market in the Middle East region and has around 35 existing colocation data centers spread across the country, with most of them being in Dubai.
2. In 2024, the UAE data center market accounted for approximately 29% of the total white floor area added by data center operators in the Middle East. This represents the largest share held by any single country in the region.
3. Wholesale colocation continues to dominate the colocation market in the UAE with a higher capacity and market share compared with retail colocation. The demand for wholesale colocation is expected to grow owing to the growth in the use of cloud-based services. Cloud operators are likely to store part of their workloads via wholesale colocation.
4. A strategic integration of technological innovation, sustainability, and global partnerships is evident in the UAE data center market. This dynamic environment revolutionizes the digital economy of the UAE and makes it more competitive internationally in terms of digital infrastructure.

WHY SHOULD YOU BUY THIS RESEARCH?

1. Market size available in the investment, area, power capacity, and colocation market revenue.
2. An assessment of the data center investment in the UAE by colocation, hyperscale, and enterprise operators.
3. Data center investments in the area (thousand square feet) and power capacity (MW) across cities in the country.
4. A detailed study of the existing UAE data center market landscape, an in-depth industry analysis, and insightful predictions about the UAE data center market size during the forecast period.
5. Snapshot of existing and upcoming third-party data center facilities in the UAE
6. Facilities Covered (Existing): 35
7. Facilities Identified (Upcoming): 24
8. Coverage: 5 Cities
9. Existing vs. Upcoming (Data Center Area)
10. Existing vs. Upcoming (IT Load Capacity)
11. Data center colocation market in the UAE
12. Colocation Market Revenue & Forecast (2024-2030)
13. Wholesale vs. Retail Colocation Revenue (2024-2030)
14. Retail Colocation Pricing
15. Wholesale Colocation Pricing
16. The UAE data center landscape market investments are classified into IT, power, cooling, and general construction services with sizing and forecast.
17. A comprehensive analysis of the latest trends, growth rate, potential opportunities, growth restraints, and prospects for the industry.
18. Business overview and product offerings of prominent IT infrastructure providers, construction contractors, support infrastructure providers, and investors operating in the industry.
19. A transparent research methodology and the analysis of the demand and supply aspects of the industry.

VENDOR LANDSCAPE

1. Global cloud providers such as Microsoft, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Oracle, and Alibaba are establishing and expanding their operations in the UAE data center market. AWS continues to grow its cloud footprint, capitalizing on the expanding digital economy of the country, while Microsoft has expanded its cloud operations in both Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
2. The UAE data center market is primarily dominated by regional operators, including Khazna Data Centers, Gulf Data Hub, Moro Hub, and du. The global operator Equinix also has a significant presence in the market. The UAE data center market is also witnessing several new entrants which include Quantum Switch Tamasuk and Pure Data Centres.
3. Khazna Data Centers holds the highest market share of over 59% in the UAE as of H1 2024. However, the market share is likely to change during the forecast period as Gulf Data Hub is involved in the development of additional data center facilities that are likely to go live during the forecast period. Gulf Data Hub currently holds the second spot.
4. Telecom operators such as Etisalat and du are the major telecom operators that have launched commercial 5G services across the country.

EXISTING VS. UPCOMING DATA CENTERS

1. Existing Facilities in the Region (Area and Power Capacity)
2. Dubai
3. Abu Dhabi
4. Other Cities
5. List of Upcoming Facilities in the Region (Area and Power Capacity)
6. Dubai
7. Abu Dhabi
8. Other Cities

REPORT COVERAGE:

This report analyses the UAE data center market share. It elaboratively analyses the existing and upcoming facilities and investments in IT, electrical, mechanical infrastructure, general construction, and tier standards. It discusses market sizing and investment estimation for different segments. The segmentation includes:

1. IT Infrastructure
2. Server Infrastructure
3. Storage Infrastructure
4. Network Infrastructure
5. Electrical Infrastructure
6. UPS Systems
7. Generators
8. Transfer Switches & Switchgears
9. PDUs
10. Other Electrical Infrastructure
11. Mechanical Infrastructure
12. Cooling Systems
13. Rack
14. Other Mechanical Infrastructure
15. Cooling Systems
16. CRAC and CRAH Units
17. Chillers Units
18. Cooling Towers, Condensers and Dry Coolers
19. Other Cooling Units
20. General Construction
21. Core & Shell Development
22. Installation & Commissioning Services
23. Building & Engineering Design
24. Fire Detection & Suppression Systems
25. Physical Security
26. Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM)
27. Tier Standards
28. Tier I & Tier II
29. Tier III
30. Tier IV 
31. Geography
32. Dubai
33. Abu Dhabi
34. Other Cities

VENDOR LANDSCAPE

1. IT Infrastructure Providers: Arista Networks, Atos, Cisco Systems, Dell Technologies, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Huawei Technologies, IBM, Lenovo, and NetApp.
2. Data Center Construction Contractors & Sub-Contractors: AESG, ALDAR, ALEC Engineering & Contracting, Arcadis, Arup, ASU, BG&E, Black & White Engineering, CADD Emirates, Condor Group, Core Emirates, DC PRO Engineering, Edarat Group, Group AMANA, HHM Group, James L Williams, John Paul Construction, Laing O’Rourke, Laith Electro Mechanical, Linesight, M+W Group, McLaren Construction Group, Meinhardt Group, MEMA Architecture, Raghav Contracting, Red Engineering Design, Rider Levett Bucknall, RW Armstrong, Site & Power DK, STS Group, Sudlows, Syska Hennessy Group, Telal Engineering & Contracting, and Turner & Townsend. 
3. Support Infrastructure Providers: ABB, Airedale, Alfa Laval, Caterpillar, Chatsworth Products, Cummins, Delta Electronics, Eaton, Envicool, Johnson Controls, Legrand, Rittal, Rolls-Royce, Schneider Electric, Siemens, STULZ, Vertiv.
4. Data Center Investors: Core42, du, Equinix, Khazna Data Centers, Gulf Data Hub, Moro Hub, Pacific Controls.
5. New Entrants: Quantum Switch Tamasuk (QST) and Pure Data Centres.