Good news from DeKalb!

Meta is announcing the expansion of the Meta DeKalb Data Center. This will more than double the square footage of the data center from two buildings to five. With this announcement, this data center represents a total investment of more than $1 billion in DeKalb and Illinois. We’ll keep construction workers on site for years to come, and at the completion of the work, we will support over 200 operational jobs at the DeKalb Data Center.

When we announced we were building our 12th U.S. data center in DeKalb in June 2020, we talked about the reasons we chose DeKalb: good access to renewable energy, a strong pool of talent, and a great set of community partners. Since then, we’ve moved 1.4M tons of dirt, we’ve poured 10,500 cubic yards of concrete, and erected 7,500 tons of steel. Everything in DeKalb is exactly as promised, and we’re so excited to continue growing here in this community.

At Meta, we are committed to playing a positive role and investing in the long-term vitality of the communities in which we operate. One of the ways we do this is by funding projects that meet community needs through our Community Action Grants program. Meta’s Community Action Grants are available to schools and registered 501c3 non-profit organizations in locations where Meta has an online data center. We’re excited to announce the application window for the Data Center Community Action Grants program will launch in DeKalb County in the fall of 2022. To further enhance the local impact of this announcement, Meta also provided a $50,000 grant to support STEM materials and opportunities in 2022 for elementary and secondary students in DeKalb Community School District 428.

Meta is also announcing an exciting Illinois partnership that is helping the company – and has the potential to eventually help others – lower the carbon footprint of our construction. Meta is collaborating with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on a pilot with the goal of developing a more sustainable concrete mix. The process uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help experts generate the possible formulas for the concrete mixes. This work helps us move toward further reduction of our carbon footprint to reach net zero emissions across our value chain in 2030. Through collaboration with our concrete trade partner, Ozinga, the formula was refined and test applications were poured into non-critical areas of the DeKalb Data Center. These test applications confirm early signs that we have been able to successfully design and use concrete that meets our long-term strength requirements and has a 40 percent lower carbon impact than the regional benchmark. While we are encouraged by the success of this pilot, further developments and tests are needed to scale the impact of this innovation.

In Illinois, we have invested in two new wind energy projects in Morgan and DeWitt counties, adding a total of 295 MW of renewable energy to the local grid. These renewable energy projects represent over $140 million in local investment and will support nearly 700 construction jobs. Project operations will support 30 jobs annually across the state. Meta data centers are on average 80% more water efficient than the industry standard, and the company’s global operations, including the DeKalb Data Center, are supported by 100% renewable energy.

All of this work would not be possible without our trade partners, and we recently cheered for our first Meta DeKalb Data Center Hardhat in Hand (HHH) cohort. HHH is a nationwide construction jobs training program held at Meta data center construction sites. The six DeKalb Data Center graduates were trained by Mortenson Construction and the Awaken Foundation (education partner) over an intensive eight week training period and are now eligible for jobs with Mortenson or other trade partners.

We have made ourselves at home here in DeKalb! As we continue to build out the DeKalb Data Center, Meta remains dedicated to working with our community partners to connect with our neighbors, improve STEM education and assist with economic development. Meta is thankful to have partnered with DeKalb for two years  – here we go again!

Follow our DeKalb Data Center journey