Meta, formerly Facebook, hits ‘peak construction’ on $800M data center in Kuna
Meta is now at “peak construction” of its $800 million data center in Kuna, representatives from the social media giant formerly known as Facebook say.
The nearly 1 million-square-foot data center is in the works at the northeast corner of Cole and Kuna Mora roads in southeast Kuna.
“Construction is going well and the exterior on all buildings is complete,” said Stacey Yip, a spokesperson for Meta, in an email to the Idaho Statesman. “Paving and landscaping still need to be finalized and will take place this year.”
Yip said about 1,400 construction workers are now on site, 200 more than was anticipated for peak construction when the center was announced in 2022. Meta contracted with Colorado-based Hensel Phelps Construction and Boise’s Engineered Structures Inc.
Yip did not clarify what of the $800 million total capital investment went toward construction costs, but confirmed that the number is “still accurate for our total investment in the region.”
The center is expected to be operational by the end of 2026, Yip said, a year later than originally planned.
Delays were caused by a redesign to support artificial intelligence technologies by “building an increased level of flexibility into our processes,” she said. “Supporting AI workloads at scale requires a different approach than scaling to support our traditional online services.” BoiseDev earlier reported on the redesign.
The site Meta purchased in southeast Kuna totals 485 acres, the Statesman reported using information from the Ada County Assessor’s Office.
Once built, the center would employ 100 workers.
More big data centers coming to Idaho
Meta’s Kuna center is the first large data center slated for Idaho and the Treasure Valley, but tax breaks and low electricity rates may be attracting others.
On April 1, the Kuna City Council approved another large data center on Locust Grove Road, roughly six miles west of the Meta center. That center, called the Gemstone Technology Park, is expected to cost more than $1 billion, at least 25% more than the Meta center, and is anticipated to take 10 years to build.
Gemstone’s developer, Kansas-based Diode Ventures, has not yet announced who would operate the center. Yip told the Statesman it won’t be Meta.
Data centers are on the rise nationwide, in part to meet demand from the growth of technologies like AI. Five years ago, the Idaho Legislature endeavored to entice data centers and the big investments that come with them by enacting a sales-tax exemption on construction materials and server equipment.
But this year, legislators raised concerns over the enormous amounts of electricity and water data centers consume.
Data centers’ water, power use
The Meta center in Kuna is expected to use an average of 70,000 gallons of water per day — 80% less water than industry standard, a spokesperson previously told the Statesman, thanks to “cooling technologies” and allowing the center to be cooled with outside air.
And Meta wants to use 100% renewable energy to power the center. It’s helping build the Pleasant Valley Solar project, about halfway between Boise and Mountain Home, which is expected to generate 325 megawatts of electricity over two phases of build.
According to Idaho Power, one megawatt powers 650 homes on an average day.
Yip did not say how many megawatts Meta’s Kuna center would consume, but told the Statesman that that information would become available annually once the center comes online next year.
