- Icolo Ltd operates carrier-neutral data centres in Kenya, providing colocation, cloud connectivity, and peering services.
- The company is part of a rapidly expanding African data centre market, which faces challenges like high energy costs but is innovating with renewable energy and edge computing.
Icolo Ltd: Anchoring east Africa’s digital expansion
Icolo Ltd, a Nairobi-based carrier-neutral data centre Kenya operator, has become a linchpin in Kenya’s digital infrastructure since its founding in 2002. The company runs two key facilities: NBO1 in Mombasa, a critical landing point for undersea cables like SEACOM and EASSy, and NBO2 in Nairobi, serving as a hub for colocation, cloud connectivity, and internet peering.
According to a recent Africa Data Centres Market Report, Kenya’s data centre market is projected to grow at 12% annually until 2026, driven by cloud adoption. Icolo’s carrier-neutral model positions it well to capitalize on this trend.
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Icolo Ltd’s challenges: power and competition
Despite its strategic position, Icolo operates in a market fraught with challenges. Kenya’s high energy costs and unreliable grid power force data centres to rely heavily on diesel backups, squeezing profitability. Industry-wide, operators are exploring solar and hybrid solutions to cut costs—a shift Icolo may need to accelerate to stay competitive.
Rivalry is also intensifying. Regional players like Liquid Intelligent Technologies and Africa Data Centres are expanding aggressively, while global giants like Amazon Web Services plan new cloud regions in Africa. Icolo’s differentiation lies in its carrier-neutral model and prime locations, but maintaining edge requires continuous investment in redundancy and low-latency networks.
