The Analytics agency iKS-Consulting presented the results of the first half of 2025 at the anniversary “Data Center” forum in Moscow.
The Russian commercial data center market continues to show steady growth –yet faces new challenges ranging from infrastructure shortages to shifting customer demands.
Andrei Aksenov, CEO of IXcellerate, shared expert opinion on the market situation.
Key figures and market trends
According to iKS-Consulting, Russia’s commercial data center market revenue in 2024 reached 130.9 billion rubles, 16% higher than the previous period. The total available capacity is estimated to reach 85,800 rack spaces by the end of 2025. Newly commissioned facilities (4,600 rack spaces) will expand data center capacity by 5% compared to 2024.
The colocation segment shows the strongest revenue growth, accounting for 38.8% of the total market. Price increases and supply shortages in key geographies have accelerated this segment’s growth (+19%), outpacing cloud services (+11%). This reflects a strategic shift among Russian enterprises toward owning their infrastructure and building long-term partnerships with reliable data center providers.
The industry consolidation continues: a stable group of leading players is taking shape, represented by analysts in the form of a commercial data center map. According to iKS-Consulting forecast, by the end of 2025, the top players, including IXcellerate and Rostelecom, will provide more than 40% of the total capacity of commercial data centers in Russia.
«The key market issue today is not the overall capacity, but the quality and readiness of infrastructure to meet modern requirements. Demand is concentrated on proven, fault-tolerant facilities rather than just data centers with available rack space. Far from all data centers can ensure a development horizon and room for scaling customer businesses 5–10 years ahead».
Andrei Aksenov, CEO of IXcellerate
Digital transformation as the core growth driver
«The large-scale digital transformation of Russian business remains one of the main drivers of growth. Many organizations continue to migrate mission-critical systems to commercial data centers that ensure high availability and data security. The rise of artificial intelligence and high-performance computing clusters is creating an ever-increasing demand for robust infrastructure».
Andrei Aksenov, CEO of IXcellerate
All new IXcellerate facilities are designed and ready for high-density deployment with average loads of 10 kW per rack and above – a crucial parameter for modern computing tasks, including AI and machine learning.
Growth paradox: capacity shortage amid rising demand
iKS-Consulting analysts highlight a paradox: even as data volumes double every 2–3 years, the pace of new capacity construction is slowing down. Moscow faces racks’ shortage despite active construction. This is due to deferred demand and supply-side constraints.
In Moscow, despite active construction in previous years, there remains a shortage of rack spaces. The main limiting factors continue to be the high capital cost capital and complex project financing.
«It is important to understand that building high-reliability commercial data centers is not only a matter of financing but also a complex engineering and logistics process that requires at least 24–36 months from design to launch. To stay ahead of the curve, IXcellerate follows a phased development strategy, commissioning 2,000–3,000 new rack spaces annually – maintaining its technological leadership while closely aligning with customer needs».
Andrei Aksenov, CEO of IXcellerate
Evolving customer needs: from cabinets to partnerships
The import substitution of IT infrastructure is driving companies to invest in long-term domestic solutions. However, the nature of demand has changed significantly.
«According to IXcellerate estimates, demand for colocation services remains high, and we expect substantial market growth in the coming years. At the same time, customers are no longer seeking just a place to host their servers – they are looking for a technology partner capable of scaling alongside their business over a 5–10 year horizon».
Andrei Aksenov, CEO of IXcellerate
Key expectations now include energy efficiency, network connectivity, flexible contracts, and the ability to scale. When expanding existing campuses and building new data centers, IXcellerate provides customers with phased capacity growth options – from hundreds to thousands of servers – after conducting engineering assessments to ensure infrastructure readiness for technological changes.
Market outlook
The data center industry is becoming a critical component of the digital economy – the development of AI technologies, cloud services, and business digital transformation depends on it. In an environment of high demand and limited supply, the ability of operators to plan capacity years ahead and implement innovation is a decisive competitive advantage.
The medium-term industry prospects of the industry also include tightening requirements for information security and energy efficiency. Growing need for infrastructure capable of adapting to new technologies – from high-density GPU cluster colocation to hybrid multi-cloud architectures.
«We are actively expanding campuses and building new data centers, ensuring digital growth for our customers and partners. By implementing advanced technologies and creating infrastructure ready for high-load deployments, we provide the technological foundation for the most demanding innovative projects. IXcellerate has designed a dedicated laboratory for testing supercomputers operation with loads up to 200 kW based on hybrid air liquid cooling. This will enable future colocation services for AI/ML platforms with guaranteed SLA in our new MOS6 data center».
Andrei Aksenov, CEO of IXcellerate
You can download the iKS-Consulting commercial data center map at the link below.
