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Blackstone Inc., a US private equity giant, confirmed its £10 billion or US$13.3 billion investment to build an AI data center in northeast England. The announcement was made by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer during his visit last week in New York.
The AI data center project is expected to start next year. It would create around 4,000 jobs, out of which about 1,200 would be directly attributable to the construction itself.
The Britain-based UK startup Britishvolt which intended to construct a large battery factory in Blyth, Northumberland went bankrupt last year. This derailed national ambitions to build an indigenous domestic battery industry. Blackstone's new investment opens the window again for resuscitating the region's economy.
The president and chief operating officer of Blackstone said, "This investment not only demonstrates our confidence in the future of the UK's technology sector but also our commitment to contributing to local communities."
Alongside the data center, Blackstone has agreed to commit £110 million to a local fund targeting skills training and transportation infrastructure improvements in Blyth.
It remains to be seen whether this investment will uplift the UK’s economy or ruin the nation’s environment with carbon emissions. According to the Guardian, the AI emissions of Google, Microsoft, Apple, and Meta-controlled data centers amount to 662% higher than the actual claims. Read more
