London — Google said will make investments of $6.8bn in the UK as US President Donald Trump prepares to visit the country, which is expected to feature a flurry of business deals and partnerships.
The US tech company also announced the opening of a new data centre near London to meet growing demand for its AI-powered services such as Google Cloud, Search, Maps and Workspace.
The investment “is a powerful vote of confidence in the UK economy and the strength of our partnership with the US,” UK finance minister Rachel Reeves said in the company’s statement. The Alphabet-owned company said the investment is projected to create 8,250 jobs annually at UK businesses.
The announcement will be seen as a boost for Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour government, which is hoping to attract private investment to grow a sluggish economy and regain momentum in national opinion polls. The Trump visit is also expected to deepen economic ties between the two Western allies. Senior US officials have said economic deals worth more than $10bn would be announced.
In its statement, Google also said it had agreed on a deal with Shell that would contribute to grid stability and the UK’s energy transition.
Its Waltham Cross data centre, about an hour’s drive from London, uses air-cooling technology to reduce water usage and is equipped to reroute heat from the centre to local homes or businesses, thereby minimising its overall environmental impact, Google said.
Together with its clean energy initiatives and the Shell partnership, Google said its UK operations are expected to run at or near 95% carbon-free energy in 2026.
Reuters
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