Amazon Says New Missouri Data Center Will Create 400 Jobs

There's some good news, but also many questions about a new data center that Amazon is bringing to Missouri. The project will create 400 jobs according to the company and they're also making some big promises to those who are concerned about other issues.

You can read the full press release directly from Amazon for yourself, but I will be happy to summarize for you. This statement was just released a few days ago saying "Amazon announced plans to invest several billion dollars in Missouri to build a state-of-the-art data center campus in Montgomery County". Here are some economic facts they included to show the expected impact:

• It will be located near New Florence, Missouri on land that used to be a tree nursery
• At least 400 jobs will be created including "HVAC technicians, project engineers, network specialists, operations managers, and security specialists, among others"
• Amazon's project will include "over $7 million in community contributions from Amazon including funding for emergency dispatch services, a new gathering space at the fairgrounds, and a new community fund to provide grants for community projects"

But, what about the new data center's impact on utility costs for Missourians?

Amazon claims they've taken the energy cost into consideration as they state "the rates we pay are designed to ensure that we cover the costs of our energy use, so Ameren's current customers won't see any costs associated with powering our data centers on their electric bill". 

What about those who are concerned with how this new data center will affect local water supplies?

In case you're not aware, the computer hardware inside of massive data centers like this require extreme cooling efforts. Many are worried that this will harm local water supplies in Missouri. Amazon addressed this to in their press release saying "data centers will only use water for cooling for 7% of the year or less". They believe they can use outside air for what they say are very efficient cooling methods.

Check out all the details of what Amazon has planned for the New Florence, Missouri data center here.