Governor McAuliffe Announces Third Microsoft Expansion in Mecklenburg County

RICHMOND - Governor Terry McAuliffe announced today that Microsoft Corp. will invest $346.7 million to expand its data center site in Mecklenburg County and increase capacity to serve its growing customer base. Virginia successfully competed against other sites in the U.S. for the project, which will create 90 new jobs. Microsoft’s original project in 2010 involved an investment of up to $499 million and 50 new jobs. In 2011 the company invested an additional $150 million to expand the site, and in 2013 announced a $348 million expansion.

Speaking about today’s announcement, Governor McAuliffe said, “Microsoft’s data center campus in Mecklenburg County continues to represent transformational growth, opportunity, and investment for the region and for Virginia. The third expansion project brings the company’s total capital investment to more than $1.3 billion since 2010. Microsoft’s success and continued investment is a powerful testament to the benefits of doing business in Virginia and the thriving data center industry in the Commonwealth.”

“Microsoft has played an important role in the success of Mecklenburg County and Southern Virginia since the establishment of its data center site in 2010,” said Maurice Jones, Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade. “The company continues to grow its operation, and this significant expansion is another example of state partners working together to meet a corporation’s needs within a short timeframe. As Microsoft’s customer base expands, we remain ready to help facilitate its success any way we can. We thank the company for its continued commitment and investment in Virginia.”
Founded in 1975, Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software, services, devices and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

“We are excited to continue building our relationship with the Commonwealth of Virginia and the County of Mecklenburg,” said Christian Belady, General Manager, Data Center Services, Global Foundation Services at Microsoft. “Each expansion allows us to better meet our customers’ growing cloud service needs. As with the other expansions, we’re using the same state-of-the-art technology that minimizes environmental impact while maximizing our customers’ computing capacity.”

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with Mecklenburg County to secure the project for Virginia. Dominion Virginia Power, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, and the Mid-Atlantic Broadband Communities Corporation also were instrumental in securing this project. Governor McAuliffe approved a $1.6 million grant from the Governor’s Opportunity Fund to assist Mecklenburg County with the project. The Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission approved $1.6 million in Tobacco Region Opportunity Funds for the project.

“Mecklenburg County is again very pleased to announce another expansion of Microsoft,” said Glenn Barbour, Chairman of the Mecklenburg County Board of Supervisors. “Our County Administrator Wayne Carter has been working closely with the company to offer all the assistance our county could provide. This expansion opens up many more opportunities for our county to offer jobs to our citizens and greatly expand our economic base. I encourage our citizens to pursue these opportunities. We look forward to working with Microsoft well into the future.”

"I am immensely proud that Mecklenburg County has proven to be a good place for Microsoft to continue to grow and expand," said Senator Frank Ruff, Vice Chairman of the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission.

“We are pleased to work with and support the efforts of Mecklenburg County and the Virginia Economic Development Partnership to encourage business growth and expansion in the Commonwealth,” said Robert M. Blue, President of Dominion Virginia Power. “We are ready to do our part to make this opportunity a success for all involved.”

“We are proud that our robust, open-access fiber optic network continues to pay economic dividends to Southern Virginia,” said Tad Deriso, President & CEO of the Mid-Atlantic Broadband Communities Corporation. “We appreciate the strong support and collaboration with the Microsoft network team, and look forward to our continued partnership.”