Oracle flicks the switch on new Singapore cloud region

Oracle has flicked the switch on another cloud region in Singapore.

Big Red reckons the new bit barn will meet Asia's enormous demand for cloud services. It's not tilting at windmills: analyst firm IDC recently reported that Asia's cloud services market grew 28.1 per cent year-on-year in 2020, ahead of worldwide growth at 24.1 per cent year-on-year. The firm predicted according to IDC. Asia is no exception to the growth trend, with a 28.8 per cent year-on-year increase in demand for public cloud in 2021 alone, as COVID gave enterprises reasons to prioritise resilience of their digital infrastructure.

Oracle said the cloud region, which is to be its 33rd globally, already has some potential customers including APL Logistics and Fujifilm Business Innovation Asia Pacific, but stopped short of saying any organization had officially signed up.

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Garrett Iig, Big Red's president for Asia Pacific and Japan, said Oracle Cloud has experienced triple-digit growth in the last year and the latest facility can help businesses meet in-country data residency requirements.

Oracle plans on a quick expansion to at least 44 cloud regions by the end of 2022, with plans for regions in Italy, Sweden, Spain, South Africa, Mexico and Colombia. Meanwhile Saudi Arabia, France, Israel and Chile will get a second region each.

The database giant's cloudy quest has put the company in some interesting civil engineering situations. Its first of two planned public cloud facilities in Israel is able to withstand rocket attacks as it exists 50 metres below one of Jerusalem's technology parks. From nine floors underground, the server farm is designed to run with its own power generators in case of emergency. ®