Friday morning, Meta announced the expansion of their Eagle Mountain Data Center, increasing their investment to over $1.5 billion.
“We are thrilled to be expanding our presence in Utah,” said William Marks, Community Development Regional Manager at Meta. “Eagle Mountain and the State of Utah have been great partners from the beginning and we look forward to a continued strong and fruitful partnership for years to come.”
According to Marks, the data center will be a 4.5 million square-foot campus once completed and will support more than 300 jobs.
In addition to the data center campus expansion, Meta also announced a $200,000 grant in support of the Hobble Creek Flow Restoration Project in Utah County, which will improve water flow to Hobble Creek and Utah Lake.
The project will restore 476 million gallons of water per year.
“We are committed to restoring 200% of the water our data center consumes into local Great Basin watersheds,” said Marks.
“They’re putting their money where their mouth is,” said Evan Berrett, Economic Development Director for the City, when asked about the restoration project. “It’s been clear to me that Meta has been aware of everyone’s concerns about [water conservation].”
According to Meta, the Eagle Mountain Data Center design is 80% more water-efficient than the average data center. The data center conserves water by recycling water multiple times before discharging it as wastewater.
“It’s pretty exciting to have such a large data center here,” said Berrett.
Since breaking ground in 2018 and coming online in 2021, the Meta data center has contributed significantly to the economic growth of Eagle Mountain.
Meta has sponsored events, offered financial assistance to businesses struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic, and has been an active participant in the Union Chamber of Commerce.
In addition to the direct ways Meta has influenced Eagle Mountain, Berrett says there are several ways Meta’s presence has benefitted the City indirectly.
“That’s what put us on the map for economic development,” he said. “That’s why we have other data centers looking at us, because Facebook paved the way for that.”
Since Meta’s arrival in Eagle Mountain, other businesses have followed. “[It] put in a lot of money and a whole lot of infrastructure into our city, particularly in the south part of the city,” said Berrett.
Had it not been for Meta’s data center, Berrett believes City Center would not have seen its current economic growth rates for a few more years.
