Facebook Brings Eagle Mountain Data Center Online

EAGLE MOUNTAIN, Utah — Facebook’s Eagle Mountain Data Center is up and running as part of the social media giant’s infrastructure that brings apps and services to billions of people around the world.

The nearly 2.4 million-square-foot campus was announced in May 2018 and is supported by 100% renewable energy.

“We are thrilled to have Facebook in Utah,” Gov. Spencer Cox said. “We think Eagle Mountain is a pretty special place, and we’re glad Facebook agrees and decided to build a data center here.”

Officials said the data center, once fully built, will represent an investment of more than $1 billion in Utah and support more than 200 jobs. Construction has supported up to 1,250 workers on-site, and 85% of the project’s construction waste was recycled instead of being sent to landfills.

Facebook officials added they have partnered with the local community in supporting organizations and initiatives that help connect the community and increase digital skills. Over $2 million has been donated to schools, small businesses and nonprofit groups, including nearly $1 million as part of Facebook’s COVID-19 relief efforts.

Facebook had promised to spend at least $100 million to expand the city’s infrastructure to accommodate the project. This investment would, in turn, expand infrastructure in all of Cedar Valley and increase the county’s power grid by an anticipated 48%.

“We can’t thank Facebook enough. Without their generosity, our students wouldn’t have the same experience that they have with robots, our computer programming classes and the computers in the school,” said Cedar Valley High School Principal Courtney Johnson. “Facebook has been huge helping our students right now and into the future.”

If all five phases of the data center project are completed in the next few decades, Facebook is also set to harvest a potential $750 million in taxpayer subsidies along the way.

Renewable Energy & Less Water

Facebook is partnering with Rocky Mountain Power to bring over 800 megawatts of new solar energy to the grid, which will support more than 1,400 construction jobs and over $260 million in local investment in Iron, Tooele and Carbon counties.

“We appreciate Facebook’s commitment to and leadership in sustainability, said Theresa Foxley, president and CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Utah. “Facebook is procuring 100% renewable energy from solar-powered panels located in rural communities. So, in addition to the billions of dollars of capital investment in Eagle Mountain City, there are an additional hundreds of millions of dollars that will be invested in smaller communities all throughout the state.”

Facebook also said the Eagle Mountain Data Center is designed to use 80% less water than the average data center.

Utah is currently home to numerous data centers, including facilities operated by eBay, Twitter, Oracle and the National Security Agency.