Microsoft has announced plans to expand its Dublin datacentre to cater for increased demand in its cloud products.
The Redmond giant will invest a further $130 million into the datacentre, which will see a 112,000 square feet facility added to the complex, creating around 400 construction jobs over the next 12 months.
Another 50-70 people will be employed to manage the new facility, which Microsoft claimed would be 50 per cent more efficient than traditional datacentres. It will also use 99 per cent less water for cooling purposes.
We are delighted that our strategy to become the country of choice for data centres is coming to fruition.
"This investment shows where we are placing our bets for the future. As customers embrace Microsoft cloud services such as Office 365, Windows Live, Xbox Live, Bing and the Windows Azure platform, we are investing in regional cloud infrastructure to meet their needs," said Peter Klein, chief financial officer at Microsoft.
"We are seeing increasing numbers of European businesses and consumers adopting Microsoft's cloud services, and we are continuing to build new infrastructure and services in order to meet current and future demands," added Stephen McGibbon, chief technology officer for Microsoft EMEA.
Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny was on hand to welcome the announcement, saying it would help Ireland regain its reputation as a home for business.
"Now central to our Action Plan on Jobs we are delighted that our strategy to become the country of choice for datacentres is coming to fruition," Kenny added.
"We very much recognise the role that cloud computing can play in transforming our public sector as well as being a catalyst for economic growth."
