Meta Chooses Turner Construction for Indiana Data Centre

Turner Construction Company has been selected by Meta as one of the contractors for its US$10bn data centre campus in Lebanon, Indiana, a four-million-square-foot development designed to deliver 1GW of capacity.

The project has now broken ground, advancing one of Meta’s largest single infrastructure investments to date. 

The gigawatt-scale campus is intended to support both the company’s core platforms and its expanding artificial intelligence workloads, reflecting the growing compute intensity of AI training and inference.

For Turner, the appointment adds another hyperscale project to its mission-critical portfolio at a time when US data centre builds are increasing in size and complexity.

Building the mega projects of tomorrow

Projects of this scale require alignment not only on engineering delivery but also on community engagement and workforce participation.

Ben Kaplan, Managing Director, Turner Construction Company, says: “The scale of the Lebanon Data Centre reflects the growing demand for high-performance infrastructure.

“We look forward to working alongside Meta and applying our integrated services and deep mission-critical experience to deliver this data centre safely, sustainably and efficiently while supporting the long-term growth of the Lebanon community.”

Ben notes that delivering a campus of this size demands integrated project management and specialist experience in mission-critical construction.

Juan Santamaria, CEO of ACS Group, writes on LinkedIn: “Over the next decade, some of the most important enablers of artificial intelligence will be the high-performance, highly efficient digital infrastructure that powers the modern economy.

 “I am pleased that Turner Construction Company, part of Grupo ACS, has been selected as one of the contractors for this landmark development. It reflects Turner’s leadership in mission-critical delivery and our Group’s strategy to support global technology leaders as they build the backbone of the AI economy.

 “Congratulations to the Turner and Meta teams, and to our partners in Lebanon and the State of Indiana. This is more than a project – it is part of the infrastructure foundation for the next era of global growth.”

At peak construction, the site is expected to support more than 4,000 construction jobs. Once operational, around 300 permanent roles will be created, including positions in engineering, maintenance and site operations.

When complete, the Lebanon data centre will represent one of the largest infrastructure developments in Indiana’s history, adding gigawatt-scale digital capacity to support Meta’s AI and core service workloads.

Delivering gigawatt-scale capacity

The Lebanon campus will span approximately four million square feet once complete. With a planned 1GW of IT capacity, it ranks among the largest data centre developments currently underway in the US.

As AI models scale and rack densities increase, gigawatt campuses are emerging as a new benchmark for hyperscale operators. Facilities of this size require coordinated delivery across civil works, electrical systems, cooling infrastructure and network integration.

Meta has stated that it will pay the full cost for energy, water and wastewater services used by the facility, with the aim of ensuring local residents are not negatively impacted by the campus’ resource demand.

Clean energy and water strategy

In line with its wider sustainability commitments, Meta will match 100% of the facility’s energy use with clean and renewable energy. The data centre is being built to achieve LEED Gold certification.

The cooling system will use a water-efficient, closed-loop liquid cooling design that recirculates water and uses zero water for the majority of the year. Closed-loop systems are increasingly deployed in high-density environments to reduce water consumption while maintaining thermal performance.

Beyond on-site design, Meta has committed to restoring 100% of the water it consumes in Lebanon to local watersheds. The company is partnering with Arable to provide irrigation technology to independent farmers in Indiana’s Upper Wabash River Basin, with a target of saving 200 million gallons of water per year for 10 years.

Additional environmental measures include revitalising a section of Deer Creek to improve ecological health, expand vegetation and create improved habitat for pollinators.

Community funding and workforce development

The Lebanon campus is accompanied by a series of community investment initiatives. Meta is contributing US$1m each year for 20 years to the Boone REMC Community Fund to provide direct energy cost assistance to families. It is also funding emergency water utility assistance through The Caring Centre.

The company has committed more than US$120m towards critical water infrastructure in Lebanon, as well as other public infrastructure improvements including roads, transmission lines and utility upgrades.

Meta’s annual Community Action Grants programme will extend to Boone County schools, non-profits and local organisations. In parallel, a new county-wide workforce development programme is being launched through the Boone County Career Collaborative, supporting career exploration and work-based learning for students across three school districts.