Egypt Partners With Vodafone, Elsewedy and Cassava on $1bn Data Centre Investment
The project is expected to attract approximately $200 million in foreign direct investment during its first phase, with total investment projected to reach $1 billion once the targeted capacity is completed.
Egypt is set to strengthen its data centre and artificial intelligence infrastructure through two new strategic partnerships involving Vodafone Business, Elsewedy Electric and Cassava Technologies, with combined projects aimed at expanding the country’s capacity to host and process data locally.
The partnerships were announced in Cairo on September 8, 2026, in the presence of Egypt’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Raafat Hindi. One of the agreements will establish Africa Data Centres Egypt, a large-scale data centre project with an initial capacity of 20MW during its first three years and a targeted expansion path to 200MW.
The project is expected to attract approximately $200 million in foreign direct investment during its first phase, with total investment projected to reach $1 billion once the targeted capacity is completed. It is also expected to create up to 200 direct jobs and around 2,000 indirect employment opportunities, with Egyptian talent expected to play a role in constructing, operating and managing the facility.
Africa Data Centres Egypt will combine Vodafone Business’ expertise in cloud and enterprise services with Elsewedy Electric’s capabilities in energy, infrastructure and project execution, alongside Cassava Technologies’ experience in data centres across Africa. The facility is intended to serve large enterprises, cloud service providers and international technology companies operating or expanding in Egypt.
A separate partnership between Vodafone Business and Cassava Technologies will focus on developing what the companies describe as Egypt’s first sovereign AI data centre. The facility will provide advanced computing capabilities, including NVIDIA technologies, to support the development and deployment of AI applications while allowing data to be hosted and processed within Egypt.
The AI infrastructure will also provide GPU-as-a-Service locally, enabling organisations to access high-performance computing resources for AI workloads without having to move sensitive data outside the country. The initiative is expected to support the adoption of AI applications at scale while strengthening data security, regulatory compliance and control over locally hosted information.
Minister Raafat Hindi said the projects reflect the rapid development of Egypt’s ICT sector and growing private-sector confidence in opportunities created by the country’s digital economy. He said the investments demonstrate a shift from focusing primarily on digital services towards building the advanced infrastructure and capabilities required to support future economies.
The ministry is also developing a national data centre strategy designed to assess Egypt’s future storage and computing requirements, attract local and international investment, improve the regulatory and legislative environment, and promote international standards for data centre development. The strategy will also focus on operational efficiency, sustainability, specialised skills development and digital sovereignty.
Hindi highlighted Egypt’s geographic position and extensive international submarine cable network as key advantages that could help the country become a regional hub for data, cloud services and AI. He stressed that digital sovereignty should not mean isolation, but rather the ability to engage with international technology companies and investors while maintaining strong national infrastructure, data protection frameworks and security measures.
Vodafone Egypt CEO and Vodafone Group regional head for international markets, Mohamed Abdallah, said the partnerships demonstrate Vodafone’s commitment to supporting Egypt’s digital transformation through infrastructure investment, AI applications and technology partnerships. He also pointed to the growth of cloud and AI services as increasing the importance of local data hosting and processing capacity.
Cassava Technologies said Egypt represents a strategic market for its wider plans to develop digital infrastructure across Africa and the Middle East. The company said the partnership is designed to create scalable data centre infrastructure capable of supporting enterprises, cloud providers and technology companies while helping attract international investment.
The projects come amid growing demand for cloud computing, AI applications and advanced data processing capacity. Their development is expected to increase Egypt’s ability to host critical data and AI workloads locally while supporting its ambition to strengthen its position as a regional digital infrastructure and AI hub.
