Google to set up Cloud Services in Austria with a data centre

The facility will be located in the small town of Kronstorf, at the foot of the Alps

American tech-giant Google plans to set up a data centre in Austria, to expand cloud offers in the country and the region, according to a recent announcement. The facility will be located in Kronstorf, a small community in the federal state of Upper Austria, close to the city of Linz.

Slowly taking root

Despite the recent development, the Kronstorf project has been in the works for Google for the last 14 years. In 2008, the company purchased 70 hectares, however, it struggled to get all the necessary permits to start construction.

This is about to change and Austria will join the ranks of 35 other countries that now host a data centre of the tech giant. According to an official statement, the company will provide 100 jobs for highly skilled personnel and contribute an impressive 3.72 billion euros to the country’s GDP by 2030.

Faster services but no current deadlines

At the same time, the company has yet to mention a timetable for the development and launch of its new data centre. Nevertheless, all permits seem to be in place and Austrian companies that have outsourced their IT to Google cloud services will have a more direct line of communication with the company.

According to Christine Antlanger-Winter, Country Director of Google Austria, domestic customers will have even better service, higher performance and faster access to the company's cloud offerings. She continued by pointing out that company teams are currently working on the expansion strategy and implementing the Google Cloud Region Austria.

Christine Antlanger-Winter also thanked the Kronstorf community for their support and expertise.

Upper Austria’s Economic Councillor, Markus Achleitner said that the project would greatly contribute to expanding the region as a business location, while local energy providers are already gearing up for the inevitable spike in demand.

As Der Standard reports, the Austrian power grid has decided to invest 100 million euros to beef up the local energy supply.