Data centre operator Equinix has agreed to acquire BT Group's data centre business in Ireland, which includes two facilities in Citywest and Ballycoolin.

The €59m deal is expected to be completed in the first half of 2025, subject to competition and regulatory clearance.

BT said the transaction follows a review of its assets in Ireland, and that the two data centres, which cover approximately 150,000 gross square feet combined, are staffed by a highly experienced team.

The British telecoms group is pursuing an "asset-light strategy" internationally, transitioning away from owning and operating data centres and towards partnering with globally-scaled organisations.

The group believes the approach will make its model more commercially scalable and flexible.

“This announcement with Equinix marks an exciting new chapter for our datacentre business in Ireland," said Shay Walsh, managing director of BT Ireland.

"The deal builds on our existing successful partnership with Equinix and ensures that customers will benefit from top-tier datacentre services nationally and globally, allowing BT to specialise in our core strengths in cloud, networking, and security.”

Peter Lantry, managing director of Equinix Ireland, said the acquisition would enable the company to "continue to offer exceptional interconnection services from our unique global platform, augmenting the €35m annual contribution to national economic output arising from Equinix’s direct and indirect spend, measured in 2022.”

“We look forward to working closely with BT to ensure a seamless transition, welcoming their datacentre team and customers to Equinix and bringing the scale, expertise, and investment that next generation datacentre facilities require for excellent service delivery for organisations in Ireland and globally.”

The companies believe there will be no interruptions to BT's data centre customers as ownership of the sites transition over to Equinix.

Nasdaq-listed Equinix earlier this year hit out at the effective "moratorium" on data centre development in Ireland after a planned data centre in Clondalkin was denied a connection to the national grid last year.

The company reported revenue of $2.2bn and operating income of $425m in Q3.

Photo: Peter Lantry. (Pic: File)