Google’s data center in Jackson County, Alabama, has crossed the $2 billion mark in total investment since breaking ground in 2018. What started as a roughly $600 million facility built on a repurposed coal plant site has grown into a sprawling operation that now ranks among the company’s most significant infrastructure bets in the Southeast.
From coal plant to compute power
The Jackson County facility sits on approximately 350 to 360 acres of land that previously housed a coal plant. The data center began operations gradually between 2018 and 2022. It currently supports between 75 and 100 permanent jobs, alongside the construction positions that come with ongoing buildouts of this scale.
Google’s cumulative spend has now surpassed $2 billion, a figure that includes the original construction, subsequent expansions, and the infrastructure costs the company covers directly. The investment has generated $2.6 billion in economic activity for Alabama businesses, nonprofits, and creators in 2025, according to Google’s own accounting.
Nuclear energy enters the picture
