Acquisition of AlohaNAP Hawaiian Data Center Highlights Importance of APAC to US Business
Harrison Street, an alternative real estate investment firm, and 1547 Critical Systems Realty (1547 CSR), a data center and solutions provider, both of whom are large investors in digital infrastructure from the mainland US, have acquired a key carrier hotel data center in Oahu, Hawaii.
AlohaNAP
This data center network asset, called AlohaNAP, sits at the center of a hub that connects the US to several countries in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. This acquisition, along with other stories we have recently covered, is another indicator of the importance of the APAC region for global connectivity and data center providers.
Located in Pearl City, Honolulu, AlohaNAP, a carrier neutral facility, is directly connected to a group of undersea fiber-optic cables that link the US to the APAC region. It has multiple connections to transoceanic fiber networks and over 40 communication satellites. The location, 1,500 miles west of California, makes it a vital gateway between the US and the APAC region.
This acquisition seems to be a good fit for the digital infrastructure portfolios of both Harrison Street and 1547 CSR, providing both scale and strategic diversity. According to Michael Borchetta, Managing Director in Transactions at Harrison Street:
AlohaNAP is a crucial hub for international data transmission, connecting major global markets and serving as a key edge node for trans-Pacific connectivity within Hawaii's rapidly expanding edge computing market. Acquiring AlohaNAP strengthens our connectivity-centric data center platform, adding valuable scale and diversity across our multi-site carrier hotel portfolio. Alongside our partners at 1547, we are excited to leverage AlohaNAP's unique submarine cable and satellite access and continue to add further capacity to meet the needs of the world’s largest hyperscale tenants.
Working the Edge
The acquisition of the AlohaNAP data center will play a vital role in Hawaii’s rapidly growing edge computing market.
AlohaNAP will serve as a key juncture for the exchange of data across the Pacific, and with their expansion plans offer companies the capability to deploy a US-based edge presence with lower latency to APAC customers.
Significant value resides in low-latency, high-redundancy connectivity between the US and APAC markets, which is critical for businesses and governments -- connectivity which is facilitated by the AlohaNAP link to submarine cable networks and the redundant satellite connectivity availability.
Multinational enterprises with operations in the US and APAC are the key customers for these services, as well as the hyperscalers expanding their global reach.
AlohaNAP Expansion Plans and Capacity Growth
Harrison Street and 1547 CSR have announced aggressive expansion plans for AlohaNAP, which will begin with the development of an additional 10,300 sq ft and 1.5 MW (megawatts) of data center capacity to support approximately 200 new cabinets.
The initial expansion, now referred to as Phase 1, will increase the data center’s total capacity to 2.7 MW and 22,800 sq ft.
The current facility has 10,200 sq ft of space and 1.5 MW of available power. The new build will almost double the available capacity and, according to the acquisition announcement, is merely the first step in the creation of a multi-building data center campus.
Hawaii as a Data Hub?
It is also hoped that this acquisition and investment in the campus development will also mark the rise of Hawaii as a data hub.
Hawaii is not known for its technology sector, but it is increasingly developing a tech and digital economy alongside its tourism-based economy. If the expansion of AlohaNAP follows the path of other major data center investment it has the potential to draw new investments to the state.
Additional data center construction usually means more jobs in construction, maintenance, IT, and network engineering. The presence of a world-class data center could also draw more tech companies to establish a presence in Hawaii and bring more businesses to the state.
A Partnership Built on Connectivity
Harrison Street and 1547 CSR appear to share a similar vision of improving connectivity across the globe’s major markets.
Harrison Street has been a pioneer in digital assets, having deployed over $4.7 billion into the digital infrastructure sector since 2018, while 1547 CSR brings deep experience in designing, building and operating custom-designed data centers, all of which positions them well for this partnership.
J. Todd Raymond, CEO and Managing Director at 1547 CSR, said:
We are excited to partner with Harrison Street on the expansion of AlohaNAP, a facility that embodies our joint commitment to connectivity. Since 2012, we have been developing AlohaNAP as a gateway between the US and the APAC region and making it an invaluable asset in the global data ecosystem. As the demand for data transmission and edge computing continues to surge, we remain focused on delivering solutions that strengthen trans-Pacific communication and empower our customers to thrive in a digital-first world. The partnership with Harrison Street and AlohaNAP’s expansion will further enhance our ability to meet the region’s growing need for low-latency, high-redundancy connectivity.
AlohaNAP becomes part of the more than 1 million sq ft of data center space managed by the joint partners. It will be the 9th data center added to those run by 1547 CSR, and the first outside of the continental US.
