Apple may build West Coast data center near newly opened Facebook server farm

Apple‘s newly launched iCloud service doesn’t actually live in the clouds; it requires some serious data-grinding horsepower. The company has a facility in Maiden, N.C. and now there’s word that it’s looking at a second location, in Oregon, as efforts are made to further expand its data munching capabilities.

The news comes from OregonLive, which reveals via “two people with direct knowledge of Apple’s plans” that the potential new data center would live in Prineville, roughly a quarter-mile south of a server farm that Facebook established there earlier this year. The report mentions that Oregon has become an increasingly popular location for such things, thanks in part to its “mild weather and relatively low power costs.” The big draw, however, is tax breaks, as is often the case with such things.

Apple hasn’t formally commented on the development, though the company had a team checking out the Facebook facility as recently as this past summer. Oregon has been a potential data center site for a little while now, though Apple’s plans for the region were held up due to power constraints.

The company now has an option to buy 160 acres of land from Oregon’s Crook County, an option that expires at the end of the month.

This article was originally posted on Digital Trends

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