Saudi Arabia Calls on Gulf States to Unify Digital Network and Share Computing Power
Saudi Minister of Communications Abdullah Alswaha called on Gulf states to build a shared digital network and pool computing capabilities, as data center capacity reached 467 megawatts.
Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Alswaha called on Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to build a shared digital network, pool computing capabilities, and safeguard digital data sovereignty.
According to Arab News, data center capacity in Saudi Arabia rose from 68 megawatts in 2021 to over 467 megawatts in the first quarter of 2026, with investments in the sector exceeding $14.9 billion.
Alswaha stated that 14 gigawatts of power capacity have been allocated to data centers.
Saudi Arabia seeks to reinforce its position as a regional hub for digital infrastructure, at a time when Gulf nations are moving to expand their artificial intelligence infrastructure and interlink electricity and telecommunications networks to attract mega-projects.
What do these terms mean?
Megawatt: A unit of electrical power equal to one million watts, used to describe the amount of energy consumed or generated by a large-scale project.
Digital Sovereignty: A country's ability to retain, protect, and regulate the use of its data within its borders or in accordance with its laws.
Cloud Computing: Delivering processing power and storage over the internet instead of purchasing on-premise hardware within a company.
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