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Investing.com-- Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) announced on Tuesday it has opened a new data centre near London as part of a sweeping 5 billion pound ($6.8 billion) investment in the UK, aimed at scaling up capacity for its AI-powered services and cloud infrastructure.
The move underscores Google’s push to meet increasing demand for services like Google Cloud, Search, Maps and Workspace.
The new site, located in Waltham Cross, Hertfordshire, will rely on energy-efficient technologies including air cooling and heat recycling, the company said in a statement.
Google plans for its UK operations, including the new centre, to be powered by near‐95% carbon-free energy by 2026, alongside a partnership with Shell PLC (AS:SHEL) to support grid stability.
The investment drive is expected to generate some 8,250 jobs per year across British businesses during the rollout, bolstering the government’s efforts to attract private capital and strengthen digital infrastructure.
The facility was inaugurated by Finance Minister Rachel Reeves, who called it “a powerful vote of confidence in the UK economy.”
This project comes as global tech companies invest heavily in AI and cloud capacity, intensifying competition in data centre deployment amid debates over environmental impact and infrastructure demands.