Equinix adds third LA-area data center

Equinix has acquired a third data center in the Los Angeles area to accommodate a growing demand for information storage.

The company said late Tuesday it had agreed to pay $34.5 million for the stand-alone facility located in El Segundo that was originally built in 2001 for Exodus Communications.

The acquisition marks a continuing growth spurt in Los Angeles for Equinix, which also has announced expansion plans in Chicago and the Silicon Valley.

"The current market environment gives us a significant amount of flexibility to lease, purchase or build attractive data center properties," said Renee Lanam, chief development officer at Equinix. "We plan to explore new builds through build-out partnerships or other financing strategies to reduce the outlay of cash and maximize shareholder returns."

Equinix will link El Segundo with its downtown IBX centers through redundant dark fiber links that Equinix will manage and will give instant access to 85 networks within the Equinix IBX grid.

Copyright 2005 by United Press International