Apple is to invest almost $2 billion developing new data centers in Denmark and the Republic of Ireland. The Irish centre will be located in County Galway whilst the Danish building will be situated in Vibrog, Central Jutland.
The County Galway centre is to be built on land currently owned by the state forestry agency and is to lead to up to 300 jobs including construction staff. It’s hoped that the entire centre will be powered by renewable energy. Apple is to use both centres to power its online music and apps stores.
Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny said: “It is a very significant investment in the west of Ireland and is fantastic news for Athenry with significant knock-on benefits for the region.”
Apple boss Tim Cook added: “This significant new investment represents Apple’s biggest project in Europe to date. We’re thrilled to be expanding our operations, creating hundreds of local jobs and introducing some of our most advanced green building designs yet.”
The company said that the new centers exemplify their “commitment to environmental responsibility” and would be good not only for their business but the European economy too.
Apple currently employs more than 3,000 people in Ireland, with the vast majority of staff working at their European headquarters in Cork.