One of Ireland's largest employers has announced it is set to invest US$500 million in Dublin, with the construction of a data center at Grange Castle.
Although the project is in advanced stages, according to Irish press reports, the facility is yet to be approved by Microsoft. In a statement, the company said: "We can confirm that Ireland has been selected as the preferred location for the development of a data centre, which would meet the growing demand for our online services. However, final confirmation for this project is yet to be secured and therefore it is inappropriate to provide any further details at this time.
If approved, the Dublin facility would be similar to a new Microsoft center in Washington. That center involves an investment of about $500million and will employ up to 250 people, according to reports in the US. The first phase of that project measures 470,000 square feet and will ultimately be expanded to 1.4 million square feet.