LG CNS on Tuesday signed an agreement with Busan to build the country’s first global data center as a joint effort between the private and public sector in the port city.

The “Global Cloud Data Center” will be erected by December 2012 within Busan-Jinhae Free Economic Zone and will go down as the largest such facility, covering 133,000 square meters.

“By combining the high-quality cloud services of LG CNS with the geographical convenience of Busan, the new facility will establish itself as the nation’s landmark cloud data center,” said Kim Dae-hoon, CEO of LG CNS.

For the first phase of the project, LG CNS will be building a 40,000 KVA data center that can operate up to 72,000 servers.

Plans for the global data center were part of the five cloud policy initiatives drawn up by the central, provincial governments and the IT sector with the objective of transforming Busan City into a global IT hub, LG CNS said on Tuesday.

The initiatives called for test-running a global cloud data center cluster in Busan-Jinhae FEZ, with the Knowledge Economy Ministry providing financial support.

Cloud computing services, referring to computer users accessing different servers to meet their data needs, have become the next new technology as both individuals and companies are looking for more expansive computing resources.

With this in mind, the government and private sector in May agreed Busan was ideal for housing such facilities, as the nation’s southernmost port city is where 90 percent or more of international underwater cables enter through.

The newly built data center also will be close to Busan New Port and Gimhae International Airport.

The Global Cloud Data Center said its aim is to offer sophisticated cloud and IT-related services, including those involving disaster, recovery to beat countries like Hong Kong and Singapore, which currently stand as the global data center leaders in the Asia Pacific region.

“We will do our best to offer distinguished cloud services to customers both home and abroad,” said the LG CNS chief.

LG CNS currently operates three data centers in Korea, and two others in the U.S. and Europe.

LG CNS is cited as the nation’s leading IT service provider with more than two decades of expertise. 

By Kim Ji-hyun  (jemmie@heraldcorp.com)