Google is building a US$600 million datacentre in Council Bluffs, Iowa, that is scheduled to open in the spring of 2009.
The datacentre, which is under construction on a 55-acre site at the Council Bluffs Industrial Foundation's new business park, will bring 200 jobs to the state, according to a statement. The jobs include datacentre managers, Linux administrators and technology assistants.
"We're thrilled to announce our plans for a datacentre in Council Bluffs, Iowa, which will help us continue to provide our users and customers with the best possible service," said Paul Froutan, Google's director of operations, in the statement. "We look forward to joining the community and are grateful for the support from the state and local governments throughout our evaluation process." The statement also said Google is building the new datacentre to support the growing demand for its online services.
Last month, Iowa Gov. Chet Culver signed a bill to upgrade Iowa's tax system for computer-related businesses that exempts the electricity and capital investment necessary for this kind of a facility from sales tax, according to the statement.
Google will pay an estimated US$65 million in property taxes over the next 15 years, an estimated US$6 million in sales taxes in the next two years from the purchase of building materials, and hundreds of thousands of dollars per year for other fees and payroll and income taxes, the company said.
Google is also building datacentres in The Dalles, Ore. and Lenoir, N.C.