By Mike Robuck
Amazon Web Services (AWS) moved to maintain a lead over rivals Microsoft and Google by pumping US$35 billion into building multiple data centre campuses across the commonwealth of Virginia by 2040.
The investment will create around 1,000 jobs in Virginia, governor Glenn Youngkin stated.
AWS was offered numerous incentives to expand its footprint in Virginia and could qualify for a 15-year extension on tax exemptions for equipment and software.
The company may also be eligible to receive a custom performance grant of up to US$140 million for site and infrastructure improvements, workforce development and other project-related costs.
Virginia is a strategic communications hub for the eastern US as well as a major gateway to Europe.
All incentives require approval by Virginia’s general assembly and form part of a broader scheme to attract data centre operators.
Synergy Research Group reported in September 2022 Virginia accounted for more than a third of US data centre capacity, with AWS, Microsoft, Facebook, Google and ByteDance each having a large presence.
The research company reported 76 per cent of total US spending on cloud infrastructure went to AWS, Microsoft and Google during Q3 2022.
