SKB aims to establish NE Asia's data center hub by 2021

A model of an SK Broadband data center scheduled to be built in Saemangeum, North Jeolla Province. / Courtesy of SKB

By Kim Hyun-bin

SK Broadband (SKB) has suggested making Saemangeum a data center hub for Northeast Asia with an innovative low-power model that incorporates new and renewable energy sources, for the first time in Korea.

The company revealed a plan to establish the safest and most effective data center in Asia which has attracted a lot of attention. SKB plans to provide an eco-friendly, low-carbon “green hyper-scale data center” utilizing 50MW sunlight generation in Saemangeum. The data center plans to achieve RE30, obtaining 30 percent of its electricity from renewable energy, at the start of its operation, and plans to further increase renewable energy utilization up to 100 percent.

Moreover, energy-saving innovations have been suggested in collaboration with SK Group's energy affiliate SK E&S. They will allow customers to reduce their power costs for data center operations which will be 30 percent lower than in Hong Kong and 50 percent lower than Tokyo. Just Korea's metropolitan area alone could save around 154.9 billion won over the next 20 years.

SKB aims to fully establish a worldwide network by December 2021 by setting up a backbone connection of submarine cables in Saemangeum which will connect seven countries, while installing a fiber connection between Saemangeum and the Seoul metropolitan area at the same time. In particular, the domestic portion of the network will maximize connectivity by interlocking with SKB's Seoul data center.

Moreover, SKB is reviewing to establish an additional submarine cable to secure connectivity between countries and better position Saemangeum as Asia's new data hub. Through this, Saemangeum expects to be known for its network diversity while providing the world's best services to various local and global businesses.

The price of land in the Seoul metropolitan area is quoted at around 9 million won per square meter (around $8,000 per square meter). This means that building a 25MW data center in the area costs more than 60 billion won just for the land which will burden investors. As the land price in Saemangeum is only around 180,000 won per square meter, land can be acquired for a much cheaper price, along with incentives such as tax credits.

A venture cluster in Saemangeum, tentatively named SK Town which will be constructed by 2025, will provide restaurants, parks and public spaces including a library complex. Its construction costs are estimated at 200 billion won which SK will fully invest to vitalize the local economy.

“By utilizing SK's low carbon hyperscale data center model in Saemangeum, customers can achieve their targets to reduce carbon emissions while taking advantage of high-quality networks,” SKB CEO Choi Jin-hwan said. “With constant investment and convenient facilities in collaboration with the local government, Saemangeum could become one of the best locations for cloud operators to build next-generation data centers.”