FACEBOOK has revealed plans to build a multi-million euro data centre in Co. Meath, creating hundreds of jobs.
The social media site’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg confirmed the news on his Facebook page, and praised the town of Clonee where the centre will be located.
“Clonee Data Center will be one of the most advanced and energy efficient data centres in the world,” he said.
"We're glad to be investing in Ireland, to become a part of the Clonee community, and to continue building the massive infrastructure that connects our global community."
The Clonee base will be Facebook's sixth data centre; its second in Europe after Luleå in Sweden.
The centre will rely on renewable energy, which Mr Zuckerberg said would be sourced from its location near the Irish Sea.
“We're cooling the facility with outdoor air, but because this is near the Irish Sea we'll be using an indirect air cooling process to filter the salt from the air,” he added.
The new centre will create hundreds of temporary construction jobs and dozens of other permanent operations positions.
It is expected to be operational by the end of 2017.
