Digital Realty & Vodafone Greece to Boost Crete Connectivity
Leading data centre company Digital Realty has announced a strategic collaboration with Vodafone Greece, a global leader in telecommunications, IoT and 5G connectivity.
The goal is to enhance digital infrastructure and connectivity in Crete, demonstrating how both companies are committed to positioning the island as an emerging connectivity hub in the Mediterranean.
A critical part of this collaboration is Vodafone Greece establishing a point of presence (PoP) at Digital Realty’s new HER1 data center in Heraklion, the first carrier-neutral interconnection point for all cable landing stations in Crete.
The facility will host customers’ submarine line terminating equipment, creating a critical link in the island’s connectivity ecosystem.
“This collaboration with Vodafone Greece marks a transformative moment for Crete’s digital infrastructure,” says Alexandros Bechrakis, Managing Director, Digital Realty in Greece.
Bridging connectivity gaps
Vodafone Greece intends to deploy a robust dual-route connectivity solution between HER1 and its cable landing station in Tympaki in southern Crete.
This is specifically to enhance capacity and resilience, with the routes also serving as essential backhaul services for major subsea cables landing in Crete by seamlessly connecting to the HER1 data centre.
The companies say that connectivity between Chania and Heraklion will become more robust due to the resilient Vodafone Greece terrestrial network, which will further enhance the infrastructure for global cloud service providers, large enterprises, internet service providers (ISPs), content delivery networks and carriers.
These developments are expected to support Vodafone Greece’s existing connectivity services between Athens and Crete through Chania in the west and Sitia in the east, providing Digital Realty customers with redundant options for peering on both a national and local scale.
Bolstering digital infrastructure in Europe
Designed to establish a new digital gateway for Southern Europe, HER1 seeks to reduce connectivity and infrastructure gaps within the region and enable the interconnection of international, regional and local subsea cables to better serve EMEA regions.
Digital Realty hopes that HER1 will play a critical role in reducing Southern Europe’s digital connectivity and infrastructure gap.
Alexandros adds: “Our HER1 data centre is designed to establish Crete as a strategic digital hub, which requires close collaboration with local, regional, and global partners. By supporting critical landing cables and enhancing regional connectivity, we’re reinforcing Crete’s position as a gateway to Southern Europe and beyond.
“This collaboration with Vodafone Greece reflects our shared commitment to delivering world-class digital services and infrastructure that empower local communities and businesses.”
Nikos Plevris, Chief Network Officer, Vodafone Greece, adds: “Our partnership with Digital Realty is another critical step in what we have managed to implement through the construction and operation of our submarine cable landing station in Tympaki, Crete.
“Having agreements in place on the interconnection for some of the largest subsea fibre optic cables in the world, we connect the country with the rest of the world, bolstering Greece’s digital economy and offering new opportunities for our communities, partners and the entire country.”
The partnership is expected to further transform the digital landscape of Crete, whilst fostering growth and innovation across a range of sectors through improved connectivity and state-of-the-art data centre services.
More broadly across Europe, data centre operators face unprecedented demand following the announcement of a €200 billion (US$234.22bn) AI investment programme earlier in the year that will require substantial compute capacity expansion across the continent.
Companies like Digital Realty are seeking to tackle data centre capacity constraints, particularly as cooling cooling requirements and power demands rise.
Nikos says: “Combining our infrastructure in the area with Digital Realty’s, it is certain that we will build something truly impactful and we are looking forward to seeing the results of this collaboration.”
