Keppel, AWS Sign Deal on Renewables and Data Centres

Singapore-headquartered Keppel, a leading global asset manager and operator with strong expertise in connectivity and sustainability-related solutions, has signed a new multi-year strategic framework agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to collaborate on data centres, subsea cables, and renewable energy, regionally and globally.

The agreement was commemorated by Keppel Ltd CEO Loh Chin Hua, and CEO of AWS in Las Vegas in the US Matt Garman, in conjunction with ‘AWS re:Invent,’ an annual learning conference hosted by AWS for the global cloud-computing community.

Keppel has selected AWS, the world’s most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud, as its preferred cloud provider.  Both companies will collaborate to accelerate the adoption of AI and machine learning across Keppel’s operations through its AI Platform which will be built using Amazon Bedrock.

This collaboration is aligned with Keppel’s commitment to operate sustainably and develop connectivity solutions by harnessing AWS. By working with AWS, Keppel will also drive digital adoption of cloud and AI solutions at Keppel’s private funds.

As part of the agreement, Keppel will support AWS with its infrastructure and AWS will collaborate with Keppel who will have the opportunity to provide proposals to fulfil AWS’s infrastructure requirements. This may include providing AI-enabled data centre capacity and providing access to renewable energy projects.

Data Centre Infrastructure and Connectivity

Keppel, which has a strong record in developing and operating advanced data centres, will work with AWS to help the cloud provider expand its sustainable data centre infrastructure globally. This could include identifying suitable land for new data centres, meeting AWS’s high bar for data centre design standards, and, where possible, providing low carbon or access to renewable energy to power the data centres.

Keppel will also collaborate with AWS to bolster network connectivity through subsea cable systems, potentially enhancing AWS’s global network and improving scalability and reliability. Keppel, together with its joint build partners, is developing the Bifrost Cable System which, when fully commissioned, will be the largest capacity high-speed transmission cable across the Pacific Ocean.

AI and Sustainability Innovation

With a shared commitment towards sustainability, Keppel and AWS will also collaborate on energy-related technologies to help decarbonise power consumption in applicable grids. This includes net-zero or low carbon power generation and energy storage solutions, leveraging Keppel’s capabilities in energy infrastructure and decarbonisation.

This is also in line with AWS’s goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions across its operations by 2040 by investing in carbon-free energy, scaling solutions, and collaborating with partners such as Keppel.

Building on Keppel’s Vision 2030 aspirations, Keppel and AWS are also collaborating to accelerate generative AI innovation, including a series of workshops to design an AI Platform to accelerate Keppel’s growth strategy.

The Platform will be built using key AWS services and serve as a central hub for both existing and new AI use cases to drive productivity, generating valuable insights, and fostering innovation across Keppel’s operations.