KUALA LUMPUR: French energy technology firm Schneider Electric plans to open a South-East Asian training centre in Malaysia this year, a senior executive has said, as a boom in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure drives up power demand in the region.
South-East Asia’s data centre capacity is expected to grow three-fold by 2030, according to analysts, with Malaysia emerging as a major hotspot, attracting investments from tech giants, such as Microsoft, Amazon and Alphabet’s Google in recent years.
The country is also a key hub for semiconductors, accounting for about 13% of global testing and packaging.
AI demand is expected to drive growth in both sectors, putting pressure on firms to improve energy efficiency, the president of Schneider Electric’s semiconductors and battery segment Henri Berthe told Reuters.
“This growth is pushing us to invest in South-East Asia,” he said on the sidelines of a regional industry forum.
Berthe said the training centre would provide technical skills to the company’s partners and end users throughout the region, including semiconductor firms, using operational equipment ranging from medium-voltage energy management systems to data centre solutions. — Reuters
