Oracle to open third public cloud region in Saudi Arabia

The new region in Riyadh is part of the company’s planned $1.5bn investment to expand cloud infrastructure in the kingdom

by Gulf Business

February 6, 2023

Oracle has announced plans to open a third public cloud region in Saudi Arabia.

Located in Riyadh, the new region will be part of a planned $1.5bn investment from company to expand cloud infrastructure capabilities in the kingdom.

The Oracle Cloud Riyadh Region will join the existing Oracle Cloud Jeddah Region and the planned region to be located in Neom.

This investment is included in an MoU that Oracle has signed with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) to help Saudi Arabian businesses take advantage of the latest innovations in the cloud.

The MoU was signed during Oracle CEO, Safra Catz’s recent visit to Riyadh in the presence of Eng Haitham AlOhali, Vice Minister, MCIT.

The company also plans to expand the capacity of the Jeddah region.

“In the last century, Saudi Arabia transformed its economy by developing the infrastructure needed to produce, refine, process and transport hydrocarbons. This century we are committed to creating the digital infrastructure that will underpin future economies,” said Khalid Al-Falih, Minister of Investment.

“Oracle’s decision to expand its cloud computing capacity in the kingdom will play a key role in unlocking the opportunities that rapid technological advancements are creating.”

“MISA will continue in its quest to enable the building of a robust digital infrastructure, by creating an attractive environment for these investments – for example, by establishing special economic zones that are tailored to particular industries such as cloud computing and digital transformation.”

As part of the MoU, the cloud company will also work with MCIT and the Communications and Information Technology Commission to establish a commercial and operational model for an additional cloud region in Saudi Arabia that is aligned with Saudi government requirements and local data residency regulations.

“Oracle’s investment will rapidly accelerate the cloud transformation across Saudi Arabia’s business and public sector,” said Richard Smith, executive vice president – Technology – EMEA, Oracle.

We are investing US $1.5 billion in #SaudiArabia to meet the Kingdom’s rapidly growing cloud computing demand and support its #SaudiVision2030: https://t.co/iIdxj1FGEL pic.twitter.com/TXOVrYIOu5

— Oracle (@Oracle) February 6, 2023

“Oracle cloud delivers pioneering innovation in technologies like AI, machine learning, and IoT, and it will help fuel the economic growth and digital transformation that is an integral part of the Saudi Vision 2030.”

Analyst commentary
IDC believes that with Saudi Arabia set to be the fastest-growing economy worldwide in 2023, the opportunity it presents is unprecedented.

“Given the various economic diversification initiatives underway, as well as the slew of giga and mega project announcements, technology spending in the kingdom is poised for strong growth. This growth will primarily be driven by the acceleration of digital transformation, with cloud computing, among other technologies, facilitating large-scale innovation and transformation across industries and economic sectors,” said Jyoti Lalchandani, group VP and regional MD, Middle East, Turkey and Africa, IDC.

“Oracle’s announcement today is a significant milestone in Saudi Arabia’s rapidly evolving tech landscape and indicative of the growing demand for public cloud services that exists within the kingdom.

Indeed, IDC estimates that public cloud spending in Saudi Arabia will increase at a CAGR of 26.8 per cent over the coming years to reach $3.1bn in 2026, spurred by organizations looking to leverage the power of the cloud to modernize their critical business applications and become cloud native,” he added.

Sustainable operations
Oracle has committed to powering all its global cloud regions with 100 per cent renewable energy by 2025.

Several including North America, South America and Europe regions are already powered by 100 per cent renewable energy.

To further advance its commitment to sustainable operations, the company recycled 99.9 per cent of its retired hardware in FY’22.

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