Facebook has plans to expand data center in New Mexico

SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN

ALBUQUERQUE - Facebook’s plans for New Mexico now call for a half-billion-dollar investment and a data center spanning an area equal to 17 football fields.

Gov. Susana Martinez’s office announced early Tuesday that the social media giant will be doubling its investment in the state with the planned expansion of its data center currently under construction near Los Lunas, a rural area just outside of Albuquerque, New Mexico’s largest metropolitan area.

The governor praised the announcement, saying Facebook is a key player as the state diversifies its economy.

Facebook broke ground on the first building in October. It’s expected to go live in late 2018.

The second building will likely keep construction crews busy through 2020.

Tom Furlong, Facebook’s president of infrastructure, thanked the Martinez administration and the village of Los Lunas for their support and said the company continues to find a strong pool of talent to build the data center.

Facebook says the Los Lunas facility will be one of the most advanced, energy-efficient centers in the world. It will have an evaporative cooling system capable of protecting the servers inside from New Mexico’s dust storms.

State economic development officials have estimated that New Mexico could gain about $65 million in grossreceipts tax revenue over the next decade from construction and infrastructure costs related to the project.