By Business & Finance 
Google has officially opened its second data centre in Ireland, a high security €150m facility at Grangecastle in Co. Dublin.
The new centre houses servers which run many of Google’s main products in the region, including the search engine, Gmail and Maps.
The new energy efficient data warehouse is situated beside its first centre, which opened in 2012 and 30 people will now be employed at the site.
According to Google, the new facility uses advanced air-cooling systems that utilise Ireland’s cool climate to keep the servers at the right temperature.
Head of Google in Ireland and vice president Ronan Harris said the company had continuously invested in Ireland since arriving here 13 years ago.
Martin Shanahan, IDA Ireland’s chief executive, also welcomed the news of Google’s expansion here, saying it was testament to the business environment and skills available in the country.
Google has also revealed that its workforce here has grown to 6,000 in the past 12 months, an increase of 1,000. 3,000 of the staff are employed directly, with the balance on contract.
The company also said that has 250 open positions available at its Dublin-based Europe, Middle East and Africa headquarters.
Google has now invested over €750m in capital assets in Ireland.
