Japan Data Center Update 18: Japan’s Data Center Ecosystem Evolves With New Infrastructure and Efficiency Initiatives

Japan’s Containerized Data Center Market Is Projected to Grow 3.7x in 2025

Market researcher Fuji Chimera Research Institute released a survey on Japan’s domestic data center service market. The market is projected to reach JPY 4.72 trillion in 2025 and expand to JPY 6.82 trillion by 2030.

The market has historically been driven by large-scale investments such as hyperscale data centers. However, the institute noted that data center types are becoming increasingly diversified, ranging from large-scale facilities of several tens to hundreds of MW to smaller facilities of several MW, as well as containerized data centers. In particular, the containerized data center market is forecast to reach JPY 34.7 billion in 2025, representing a 3.7-fold increase from 2024, and expand to JPY 75.5 billion by 2030

Getworks and Hokkaido Electric recently signed a partnership agreement on containerized data center development in Hokkaido (Picture: Misawa no Mori AI Container Park) (Source: Hokkaido Electric).

Tokyo Launches JPY 520 Million Program for Data Center Waste Heat Utilization

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) has launched a public tender for businesses working on the effective utilization of waste heat from data centers. To promote the use of waste heat from the growing number of data centers expected in Tokyo, the TMG will sign agreements with companies developing advanced technologies, services, and regional coexistence models, while providing financial support. The program will provide up to JPY 520 million in total support for project expenses across FY2026 and FY2027. Proposal submissions will be accepted until June 18, with agreements scheduled to be signed in early July.

Sumitomo Electric and Partners Develop New Standards for Multicore Optical Fiber for Data Centers

Sumitomo Electric Industries is collaborating with US-based AFL and Corning, and Singapore-based TeraHop to establish common specifications for its new “4-core multicore optical fiber” designed for data centers. The companies aim to develop industry rules that enable products from different manufacturers to be used interchangeably. The first version of the specifications is scheduled to be finalized and released within the next few months.

The initiative comes as the spread of AI is rapidly increasing cabling demand inside data centers. Conventional optical fiber has only a single signal path, meaning cabling requirements increase as more equipment is added. In contrast, the new multicore optical fiber can transmit a larger volume of signals while maintaining the same cable thickness.