On October 7, WePlay Esports Arena Kyiv opened its doors for visitors for the first time. Well, it wasn’t a tournament, but another great and important event for the IT and esports industries: a press briefing on a Memorandum of Cooperation signing between the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine and TECHIIA international technological holding. The parties agreed to combine efforts in the development of the IT industry, esports and its infrastructure, STEM education, as well as data centers construction. 

Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov, Managing Partner of TECHIIA Yura Lazebnikov, and Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine for IT development Oleksandr Bornyakov participated in the briefing. 

An ecotechnopark with a data center in Southern Ukraine

Ecotechnopark is one of the large-scale projects and areas of cooperative work specified in the Memorandum that was introduced at the briefing. It will be built in Nova Kakhovka city of the Kherson region. 

The technopark’s goal is to provide computing power for high-speed data processing while setting the example of rational energy consumption and reuse. 

A data center with a capacity of up to 500 MW is at the core of the technopark. A business center, apartment complexes, and greenhouses are some objects that can also be located on its territory.

The technopark is environmentally friendly by design: it will use renewable energy from wind turbines and solar panels, as well as nuclear energy to power data centers. At the same time, the heat generated by data centers will be used for greenhouses. 

The holding plans to draw at least $200 million of investment to realize the project’s first phase. Also, data center infrastructure costs will account for about $1 billion. More than 200 jobs will be created to implement the project and manage the technopark’s facilities.

Mykhailo Fedorov talked about the Ministry’s ongoing projects, such as improving internet coverage nationwide, and the importance of large investments in Ukraine’s digital economy that the technological holding is about to make. “The launch of this project will influence e-business development in our country. We must develop services and, at the same time, develop infrastructure. That’s why we need partners with such history and innovative projects like this arena. I think soon you’ll be able to evaluate all the things this unique venue has to offer. I also hope that soon we’ll be introducing similar projects every month, which is possible thanks to great businesses that support digital transformation.”

The Ministry is responsible for developing the legal framework to support businesses’ initiatives. Oleksandr Bornyakov mentioned Bill No.3199 “On amendments to the Law of Ukraine ‘On the electricity market" that will allow “for connecting new infrastructure to the [state] network of nuclear power stations” transparently and at a competitive rate. 

The Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Station might provide energy for the future technopark, including the data center.

Yura Lazebnikov noted that the holding and the Ministry had been negotiating cooperation during the past year, and the Memorandum is based on their agreements. “As a result, we prepared the document specifying four fundamental points of cooperation: development of IT, specialized education, building and management of data center infrastructure, as well as the development of esports as the industry that intersects with all digital technologies, media, and content.”

All the projects that TECHIIA holding implements include a social responsibility component. Datacenter construction will also be beneficial for local communities. The project will entail creating new educational programs, supporting local healthcare facilities, communal and logistics infrastructures, etc.

Also, preconditions for implementing the project play a good role. “There are two factors that make such a project successful and worth implementing: connectivity channels (in which Ukraine is one of the most developed European countries) and energy capacity that the Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Station provides. Using this potential in Ukraine was a very logical step. And these investments are just the beginning,” concluded the managing partner.

Esports and governmental support

It would be impossible not to talk about the industry and its recent recognition at the legislative level in Ukraine. “With our support, esports received an official sport status in the country,” said Mykhailo Fedorov.

“The new status makes it easier for us as a tournament operator and an organization that contributes to this industry to do our job, to do business. The recognition of esports as an official sport in Ukraine positively impacts all our projects, not only the esports related ones. If the country is ready to make such quick and popular decisions, it means we can grow and discuss many issues together with the government expecting to get results here and now,” noted Yura Lazebnikov.

WePlay Esports media holding plans to put all needed efforts to ensure the industry grows and gains popularity in Ukraine and beyond. Hosting tournaments for young people who want to enter the pro scene, workshops and lectures with skilled players and commentators, and building more esports arenas and hotels are some activities on the holding’s to-do list.