Qatar-based international communications company Ooredoo has announced plans to invest approximately $800 million to acquire a 49% stake in Zankore, an artificial intelligence computing platform under development in Indonesia. The move represents a significant AI infrastructure investment by the telecom operator, extending its digital footprint into the rapidly growing Southeast Asian market.
The announcement, made on 6 August, positions Ooredoo alongside partners Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, Nokia and NVIDIA in building out the AI computing platform. Zankore is designed to provide AI computing capacity for cloud and enterprise customers, with ambitions to develop up to 1 gigawatt of NVIDIA DSX AI Factory capacity over time.
Ooredoo said the initial AI infrastructure investment is expected to generate around $600 million in cumulative earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation over the first five years, based on current estimates.
Platform Capacity and Technology Deployment
The first phase of the Zankore platform is expected to deliver approximately 200MW of AI computing capacity during the first half of 2027. This initial rollout will utilise NVIDIA GB300 NVL72 systems, according to the company.
Zankore will also deploy NVIDIA’s DSX MaxLPS technology, which Ooredoo said is designed to boost AI computing capacity by optimising power use across graphics processing units. The deployment of these systems underlines the scale of the AI infrastructure investment being directed toward the platform.
Indonesia was selected as the location for the project due to its growing digital economy and rising demand for AI computing infrastructure. Ooredoo indicated the platform is expected to expand across Southeast Asia over time, broadening the geographic reach of this AI infrastructure investment.
Strategic Rationale and Digital Infrastructure Expansion
Group CEO Aziz Aluthman Fakhroo said the investment forms part of Ooredoo’s broader strategy to expand its digital infrastructure business and increase its exposure to AI-related assets.
“Over recent years, we have systematically built one of the MENA region’s leading digital infrastructure portfolios. With Zankore, we are taking the next logical step by adding AI compute to that portfolio, extending our approach into the high-growth Southeast Asian market – one of today’s most dynamic AI infrastructure opportunities,” he said.
“We believe AI will define the next decade of value creation in emerging markets. Our role is to invest alongside the right partners, in scalable platforms that create long-term value for our shareholders while supporting the digital ambitions of the markets we serve,” he added.
Ooredoo’s existing digital infrastructure portfolio spans connectivity, international fibre and subsea cable networks, and AI-ready data centres. The addition of Zankore introduces AI compute as a dedicated infrastructure layer, creating what the company described as an integrated digital infrastructure platform covering networks, data centres and AI computing capacity.
The AI infrastructure investment effectively extends Ooredoo’s portfolio beyond its traditional connectivity and data centre operations into the high-demand AI computing segment, a market that continues to attract substantial capital across emerging economies.
FTI Capital Advisors served as financial adviser to Ooredoo on the transaction.
Looking ahead, the first major milestone will be the delivery of the initial 200MW phase of AI computing capacity in the first half of 2027, with further expansion across the Southeast Asia AI market anticipated in subsequent phases.