KUALA LUMPUR, April 30 (Xinhua) -- Australia's data center operator AirTrunk said Thursday it plans to invest 12 billion ringgit (3.02 billion U.S. dollars) to develop two new hyperscale data centers in Johor state, expanding its footprint in Malaysia's rapidly growing digital economy.

The facilities, known as JHB3 and JHB4, will be located in Iskandar Puteri and deliver a combined capacity of over 280 megawatts (MW) of information technology (IT) load. They will sit near the company's existing JHB1 and JHB2 campuses in Johor Bahru, the firm said in a statement.

With the addition, AirTrunk's total capacity across four campuses in Malaysia will exceed 700 MW, bringing its cumulative investment in the country to about 27 billion ringgit.

The new sites will be designed for high-density cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) workloads, featuring energy-efficient systems and cooling technology that uses 100 percent recycled water.

Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof said the investment reflects growing confidence in Malaysia's ambition to become a regional digital and AI hub. (1 ringgit equals 0.25 U.S. dollar) ■