du’s Data Centre Capex Push Moves Its UAE Role Beyond Connectivity

du is using stronger first-half earnings to fund data-center expansion and a planned hyperscaler partnership, Economy Middle East reported in an interview with chief executive Fahad Al Hassawi, extending the UAE telecom operator’s role beyond network connectivity.

The company posted a 12.6 percent rise in net profit for H1 2026, lifted its EBITDA margin by 2.1 points to 49.2 percent and increased capex by 12.7 percent.

The board also raised the interim dividend by 8.3 percent, putting shareholder returns beside a heavier infrastructure programme rather than after it.

Al Hassawi framed the strategy as an integrated digital-enablement model built on du’s network, customer relationships, digital platforms and internal technology.

The partnership map covers AI, cloud, cybersecurity and data centres rather than an attempt to build every layer inside du.

The data-center programme gives the strategy its infrastructure base.

Higher capex is being directed into that build-out and continuing network investment, while the approaching hyperscaler partnership would tie du’s local assets to enterprise and government demand for cloud and advanced digital services.

SME adoption is the operating gap du is trying to address.

Many smaller companies understand the value of AI, cloud and advanced digital tools, but implementation is slowed by limited resources, competing priorities, risk tolerance and uncertainty over where to start. du is pairing connectivity with education, practical use cases and digital tools intended to move those businesses from awareness to day-to-day use.

du Ventures is another route into that market.

The programme places du’s network assets, enterprise channels and customer relationships behind selected emerging companies, reducing the distance from product concept to commercial deployment.

For the operator, the venture arm also creates a way to grow revenue beyond core connectivity while staying aligned with the UAE’s push around digital infrastructure, sovereign cloud and innovation capacity.

Financial discipline remains the constraint on that expansion.

First-half operating free cash flow still rose 9.7 percent while capex increased, a result Al Hassawi used to show that the expansion is being financed from a stronger base.

du has placed three routes beside its core network business: data-center capacity, a hyperscaler partnership and du Ventures-backed deployments.

Their financial result will depend on whether they produce recurring enterprise and government revenue.