China Mobile bets on Hong Kong as gateway for global computing flows
China Mobile opens new data centre and expands cables as Hong Kong is drawn deeper into China’s national computing network
China Mobile has invested nearly HK$10 billion (US$1.28 billion) over five years to help turn Hong Kong into a global computing hub, integrating the city into China’s national network.
The world’s largest telecoms operator by subscribers on Wednesday opened a new data centre in northern Hong Kong and said it would step up investment in next-generation submarine cables.
The state-owned group aims to bring Hong Kong into China’s national computing network, which has the world’s second-largest computing capacity, behind only the United States.
“We will actively promote the full integration of Hong Kong’s computing power into the national network, making the city an important node in the global computing layout,” said Chen Zhongyue, executive director and chairman of China Mobile, at the centre’s inauguration event in Fo Tan.
The project, which began construction in 2021, is China Mobile’s second data centre in Hong Kong. Its first, launched in 2014 in Tseung Kwan O, serves as a submarine cable landing station and international network hub that supports cross-border data exchange.
Together, the two facilities have a combined capacity of more than 13,000 server racks.