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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchGoogle opened its Waltham Cross data centre in Hertfordshire in September 2025. The company announced a $1 billion investment in the facility in January 2024, saying it would add capacity for growing demand for AI and cloud services. That facility investment is separate from the £5 billion Google described in 2025 as a broader, two-year investment across the UK.
What Google built, and where
The data centre is on a 33-acre site in Waltham Cross, Hertfordshire. Google said it bought the site in October 2020 and began construction before announcing the project on 18 January 2024. The company announced the facility’s opening on 16 September 2025.
Data centres house computing equipment and the supporting infrastructure needed to run digital services. Google says the Waltham Cross site adds reliable capacity for Google Cloud and services such as Workspace, Search and Maps, including services powered by AI. These are the company’s stated reasons for the project, rather than independently measured forecasts of demand.
How to read the investment figures
| Figure | What it covers | When Google announced it |
|---|---|---|
| $1 billion | Google’s announced investment in the Waltham Cross data centre. | January 2024 |
| £5 billion over two years | A broader UK investment covering capital expenditure, research and development, and related engineering, including Google DeepMind; it is not the stated cost of this data centre alone. | September 2025 |
The sums are in different currencies and refer to different scopes and announcement dates, so they should not be treated as competing estimates of the same project cost.
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What Google says the project means for jobs
Google reports that more than 250 companies worked on building the facility, with the majority local. The company also projects 8,250 new AI-driven jobs annually at UK businesses in connection with its broader investment. That is a projection for jobs at businesses across the UK, not a count of permanent jobs at the Waltham Cross site.
Cooling, water and heat recovery
Google describes the facility as using advanced air-cooling technology intended to limit water use to domestic needs. It also says the site is equipped to support off-site heat recovery, with heat potentially routed to nearby homes, schools or businesses. These are descriptions of design and capability; the company information cited here does not quantify water savings or establish how much heat has been delivered.
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Google’s location information projects that its UK operations will run at or near 95% carbon-free energy in 2026. This is a forward-looking figure for UK operations overall, not a measured result for the Waltham Cross facility.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the announcement does—and does not—establish
The opening confirms that Google’s UK infrastructure expansion has moved from a construction announcement to an operating facility. The company links the site to rising demand for AI and cloud services and describes potential local construction and environmental benefits. Its published figures do not, by themselves, establish the facility’s ongoing local employment, actual water savings, heat supplied to neighbours, or facility-specific share of carbon-free energy.
Sources: Google’s January 2024 construction announcement; Google’s September 2025 opening and UK investment announcement; Google’s Waltham Cross location information.
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