Data Center Census Near me

Utah Data Center

Bluffdale, Utah County, UT

Also known as NSA Utah Data Center, Community Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative Data Center

OperatingFederal facility at Camp Williams; Bluffdale water records show rising use in 2014
  1. Rumored
  2. Proposed
  3. Approved
  4. Under construction
  5. Operating

The Utah Data Center is a National Security Agency facility at the Utah National Guard's Camp Williams near Bluffdale, built with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as construction agent; ground was broken on Jan. 6, 2011. Plans called for roughly 1 million sq ft of enclosed space, 100,000 sq ft of it computer space, on a 240-acre site, and the Army Corps estimated the facility would require 65 megawatts of electricity. Bluffdale built the center a $3 million water-delivery system, and city records show more water went into the facility in 2014 than in previous years.

Site size
240 acres[2]
construction site at Camp Williams
Water use
1,700,000 gal/day
maximum projected requirement ('as many as')

Key facts

Size & schedule

Planned capacity65 MW [5]
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers estimate of electricity required
Source excerpt
“The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has estimated the NSA facility will require 65 megawatts of electricity to run its equipment around the clock, which would put its annual power bill at about $18 million.”
Site size240 acres [2]
construction site at Camp Williams
Source excerpt
“Construction on the nation's first data security center for the National Security Agency officially launched with a groundbreaking Jan. 6 on a 240-acre site at the Utah National Guard's Camp Williams facility about 35 miles southwest of Salt Lake City.”
Site size235 acres [3]
MIDA Utah Data Center Project Area
Source excerpt
“235 acres at Camp Williams”
Floor area1 million sq ft [2]
roughly 1 million sq ft of enclosed space, of which 100,000 sq ft is computer space
Source excerpt
“The center will consist of multiple buildings providing approximately 1 million sq ft of enclosed space, including 100,000 sq ft of computer space devoted to filtering and detecting threats to the nation's cyber security.”
Floor area1.5 million sq ft [7]
differing figure reported by NPR in 2013
Source excerpt
“The $1.2 billion complex covers 1.5 million square feet, and includes 100,000 square feet devoted solely to computers and servers.”
Stated investment$1.2 billion [1]
$1.2 billion as stated at the 2011 groundbreaking
Source excerpt
“Groundbreaking Ceremony Held for $1.2 Billion Utah Data Center”
Stated investment$1.5 billion [5]
differing figure: $1.5 billion construction, as stated by an official quoted in the Salt Lake Tribune in 2013
Source excerpt
“Long-term stability in the utility rates was a major factor in Utah being selected as our site for our $1.5 billion construction at Camp Williams.”
Permanent jobs (promised)100 to 200 [1]
range as stated
Source excerpt
“100 to 200 permanent, high-paid employees”
Construction jobs5,000 to 10,000 [1]
range as stated
Source excerpt
“5,000 to 10,000 new jobs during the construction and development phase”
Target completionOctober 2013 [2]
original planned completion

How big is that? Data center sizes compared with football fields and Central Park.

Power

Power supplyDedicated 65 MW power substation [2]
Source excerpt
“Kiewit Federal will remain at the site working on a $25-million contract to build the 65 MW power substation.”

Water

Water use1,700,000 gal/day [6]
maximum projected requirement ('as many as')
Source excerpt
“The NSA data center in Bluffdale could require as many as 1.7 million gallons of water per day to operate and keep computers cool.”
Water use1,200,000 gal/day [9]
planned figure later reduced from 1.7 million gallons a day, per Bluffdale City Council minutes
Source excerpt
“Bluffdale City Council minutes indicate that figure was later reduced to 1.2 million gallons a day.”
Water sourcemunicipal (City of Bluffdale water-delivery system) [9]
Source excerpt
“Bluffdale built a $3 million water-delivery system for the center.”

Figures are as stated by the cited source. Where sources disagree, each figure is shown.

Water and power

Water

Power

Planned capacity65 MW [5]
Power supplyDedicated 65 MW power substation [2]

Disclosed figures only, each as the cited source states it. Many are projections or permit limits, not metered use. How data center water and power use is measured, and every disclosed figure →

Timeline

  1. Utah Military Installation Development Authority (MIDA) creates the Utah Data Center Project Area [3]

  2. Groundbreaking held at Camp Williams [2]

  3. Bluffdale City Council unanimously adopts annexation plan encompassing the data center and Camp Williams [4]

  4. NSA says failures that occurred during testing have been mitigated, after reports of electrical surges [7]

  5. Bluffdale records show the facility's monthly water usage peaked at 6.6 million gallons [9]

Issues raised

  • The Wall Street Journal reported 10 electrical 'meltdowns' and power surges over 13 months during testing, and that backup generators failed numerous tests [7]
  • Water records showed the facility paying minimum 'take or pay' charges for water it was not using [8][9]
  • State officials discussed exempting the facility from a MIDA tax on electricity use of up to 6 percent authorized by HB325 [5]

Issues are concerns and claims raised by the parties, officials or residents named in the cited sources. They are reported as attributed, not as findings by the Census.

Sources

  1. Groundbreaking Ceremony Held for $1.2 Billion Utah Data Center
    National Security Agency/Central Security Service · Jan 6, 2011 · government
  2. Construction of National Cyber Security Center Gets Under Way in Utah
    Engineering News-Record · Jan 11, 2011 · news
  3. Utah Data Center Project Area
    Military Installation Development Authority (MIDA) · government
  4. Bluffdale OKs plans to annex NSA data center
    The Salt Lake Tribune · Mar 10, 2011 · news
  5. Utah moving to exempt NSA Data Center from tax
    The Salt Lake Tribune · Aug 2, 2013 · news
  6. New Utah NSA center requires 1.7M gallons of water daily to operate
    KSL.com · Jul 12, 2013 · news
  7. NSA Says It Has 'Mitigated' Meltdowns At Utah Data Farm
    NPR · Oct 8, 2013 · news
  8. NSA Data Center's Water Use Pattern Indicates Economization
    Data Center Knowledge · May 2, 2014 · news
  9. NSA Utah Data Center using more water
    The Salt Lake Tribune · Feb 2, 2015 · news

Cite this page

Last updated Sep 23, 2026. Figures may change as records are updated — include the date you retrieved them.

APAData Center Census. (2026). Utah Data Center. Retrieved from https://datacentercensus.com/dc/nsa-utah-data-center-bluffdale-ut
MLA“Utah Data Center.” Data Center Census, Sep 23, 2026, https://datacentercensus.com/dc/nsa-utah-data-center-bluffdale-ut.
Linkhttps://datacentercensus.com/dc/nsa-utah-data-center-bluffdale-ut

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