Qatar telecommunications giant Ooredoo Group has secured a 2 billion dinars ($547 million) financing deal to accelerate growth of its data centre and Artificial Intelligence (AI) business.

The company, which is listed on the Qatar Stock Exchange and the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), said the deal will enable a “significant expansion” of capacity and the modernisation of its data centres.

The financing deal has been signed with QNB, Doha Bank, and Masraf Al Rayan.

The company said the funds will be allocated to carve out existing data centre assets from its telecom operations, with a “significant portion” also directed towards upgrading infrastructure.

The 10-year hybrid facility comprises commercial and Islamic tranches, with Ooredoo calling it the largest transaction in terms of value and tenor in Qatar’s tech sector.

In 2023, Ooredoo announced plans to expand its data centre capacity to over 120 megawatts through a $1 billion investment in the medium to long term. The company has 26 active data centres across Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Iraq, and Tunisia.

(Writing by Bindu Rai, editing by Seban Scaria)

bindu.rai@lseg.com