Google says it will invest $9 billion in Oklahoma over the next two years, expanding its existing Pryor data center and building a new one near Stillwater.
The Pryor facility, opened in 2011, has already received $4.4 billion in investments and supports services like cloud storage and artificial intelligence, according to Alphabet President and CIO Ruth Porat.
Porat also said today Google will initiate partnerships with the electrical training ALLIANCE to educate over 160 apprentices by 2030, and with OU and OSU to provide AI tools, training, and job-readiness programs for students.
Google will buy solar capacity from Leeward Energy to meet power demands, and will spend $1.5 million on a regenerative project with agriculture technology company Indigo Ag to help replenish 200 million gallons of water over seven years.
Gov. Kevin Stitt lauded Google at the press conference in Pryor Creek, saying Oklahoma has resources to host the data centers.
“Because you can take our gas pipeline, which is Oklahoma’s natural resource, and you can put a gas turbine, and you can create your own power for your own data center or your own factory, or whatever you want to build in the state of Oklahoma,” said Stitt.
Data centers use large amounts of water and electricity, leaving critics to worry over the environmental impacts as AI looms larger.
