SIZE MATTERS:

Bredell is at 6 000 m2. Isando is 5 000 m2 and 4 000 m2. Cape Town is 2 000 m2, but that’s being expanded to 3 000 m2.

‘Durban is currently the sleepy hollow of the internet,’ adds Sanderson. ‘It’s sitting at about 1 000 m2.

‘It’s a small market and, generally, the size of data centres is guided by that market. From an Africa perspective, Joburg is the largest GDP area we service. Isando campus handles multiple countries, from Angola down, and all the network operators are in Teraco.

‘We reach as far as the Seychelles and Reunion,’ Sanderson explains. ‘They peer here. They pick up their content here rather than go through the Middle East to Europe. It’s more reliable because it’s a closer route. The performance for the user is also improved, because if you look at the latency for going southern hemisphere to Europe, you’re sitting, best scenario, with latency of 140 milliseconds, whereas here, you’re sitting at around 20 milliseconds – imagine how that changes your internet experience as a user. Your speeds are simply quicker, and inputs much more responsive.’