Kiwis and clouds: AWS launches New Zealand region with NZ$7.5B investment

Amazon Web Services has officially launched its Asia Pacific (New Zealand) Region, allowing organizations to store data and run applications within the country for the first time. The infrastructure investment represents Amazon’s largest commitment to New Zealand’s digital economy, with plans to spend NZ$7.5 billion over 15 years while creating over 1,000 jobs annually and contributing an estimated NZ$10.8 billion to the country’s GDP.

What you should know: The new AWS region begins operations with three Availability Zones located in the Auckland area, each consisting of one or more data centers designed to improve redundancy and resilience.

• Organizations can now access the full portfolio of AWS services—including computing, storage, databases, and machine learning tools—while meeting local data residency requirements.
• The data centers will run entirely on renewable electricity from day one, enabled by a long-term agreement with a local wind farm.
• This marks AWS’s first infrastructure presence in New Zealand, addressing growing demand for cloud services across both public and private sectors.

The big picture: AWS now spans 120 Availability Zones within 38 geographic regions worldwide, with plans to create 10 more Availability Zones and three more AWS Regions in Chile, Saudi Arabia, and the AWS European Sovereign Cloud.

• The New Zealand launch reflects AWS’s broader Asia Pacific expansion strategy, providing lower-latency access for local users while supporting digital transformation initiatives.
• The investment positions New Zealand as a potential technology hub in the Asia Pacific region, according to AWS officials.

Economic impact: Amazon’s NZ$7.5 billion investment over 15 years is expected to generate substantial economic benefits for the country.

• The project will support more than 1,000 jobs annually across construction, energy, and information technology sectors.
• Economic projections estimate the region will contribute approximately NZ$10.8 billion to New Zealand’s gross domestic product over its operational lifetime.

What they’re saying: “The new AWS Region in New Zealand will help serve the growing demand for cloud services across the country and empower organizations of all sizes to accelerate their digital transformation,” said Prasad Kalyanaraman, vice president of Infrastructure Services at AWS.

• “With this launch, businesses can now leverage advanced AWS technologies, from core cloud capabilities to artificial intelligence and machine learning, all while meeting local data residency requirements.”
• “By investing in New Zealand’s digital infrastructure, we’re proud to support the country’s economic growth, foster innovation, and help position it as a technology hub in the Asia Pacific region.”

In plain English: AWS Regions are geographic areas containing multiple data centers called availability zones, which are positioned far enough apart to protect against local disasters but close enough to work together seamlessly.

• Think of it like having multiple backup offices in different parts of a city—if one location has problems, the others can keep your business running without interruption.
• The New Zealand region provides the same reliability and backup features available in other AWS locations worldwide.