Phoenix is now the biggest data center hub in the western US - Wha?

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All of the big computers and related equipment that businesses rely on to manage their operations have to go somewhere, and they are increasingly being installed around metro Phoenix. (No earthquakes, No Hurricanes, No Tornadoes, Occasional Coyotes & Road Runners) 

https://www.azcentral.com/story/money/business/2024/03/04/me...

Metro Phoenix now ranks first in the western United States and second nationally for data centers, according to a new report by commercial real estate brokers Cushman & Wakefield.

The rankings are based on data-center capacity, expressed in megawatts of electricity. Data centers house servers, networking equipment and other apparatus, usually in unobtrusive, nondescript buildings.

The centers around metro Phoenix also have a relatively low vacancy rate, in terms of unused power capacity, of 2.1%. That compares to about 5% nationally, said Jacob Albers, who heads Cushman & Wakefield's data center research group.

"Phoenix has always been one of the upper-tier data-center areas, but growth over the past 18 months has been especially rapid," said Albers, who co-authored the report. "All of the major players have a footprint there," he said in an interview.

Some of these facilities are run by familiar tech titans including Google and Meta Platforms, the parent of Facebook, while others are "colocation" centers where a third party leases space to multiple business users.