Internexa to Operate Data Center in Bogotá’s Zona Franca

Medellín-based Information technology and network provider Internexa has been approved to operate a data center in Bogota’s “zona franca,” a development cluster in the capital with designated economic and tax benefits for foreign investors.

The Tier III-certified data center was built by Desarrolladora de Zonas Francas, a data center design firm within the Bogotá-based ZFB Group, and will be located within the capital’s ZF Towers Services and Technology Park.

Diego Mauricio Gaitan Galindo, manager of Zona Franca of Bogotá. (Credit: Grupo ZFB)

The data center will offer storage, 24/7 monitoring and support in addition to backup services supported by several regional data centers, including a location in the central Colombian city of Medellín.

The zona franca’s Tier III status has been certified by the Uptime Institute. Internexa’s clients will receive various tax benefits in terms of importing equipment and supplies.

Jaime Peláez, general manager of Internexa, which runs fiber optic networks in all of the largest nations of South America, praised the location for its ability to provide the necessary conditions and contingency schemes to store, manage, and safeguard organizational data.

“That data — the most important asset for organizations — is always protected,” said Peláez. “At Internexa we have all the infrastructure, service, solutions, and the care model necessary to guarantee maximum quality, security, and confidence in our service.”

For Internexa and others operating within the zona franca, the potential benefits, according to ZFB Group, include: a 15% income tax, 0% VAT and tariffs on some foreign goods, 0% VAT on some local goods, and 0% CREE tax (which exists in Colombia to fund the country’s National Learning Service and Family Welfare Institution).

Diego Gaitán Galindo, general manager of Desarrolladora de Zonas Francas, said that the InterNexa data center offers quality assurance and 99.982% uptime.