Google: Canelones Data Center

Canelones Data Center, operated by Google, is a hyperscale cloud campus located in the Science and Technology Park of Canelones, near Pando, in southern Uruguay. It represents Google’s first data centre in South America and one of the most significant technology infrastructure investments in the region. The facility is strategically positioned near Montevideo, the country’s capital, and within proximity to robust energy and fibre-optic networks that connect Uruguay with Argentina and Brazil.

Originally announced in 2021 and confirmed for development in 2023, the Canelones Data Center forms part of Google’s long-term strategy to expand cloud and digital services in Latin America. The project supports the region’s growing demand for AI, data storage, and cloud computing capacity while leveraging Uruguay’s reliable renewable-energy grid and strong political and environmental stability.

⚙️ Facility Highlights

• Built as a hyperscale data-centre campus, capable of supporting multi-phase expansion over several years.
• Located on a 30-hectare site in the Science and Technology Park of Canelones, strategically positioned between Route 101 and Route 8, near Montevideo.
• Designed for tens of megawatts (MW) of IT load, enabling high-density compute and cloud infrastructure for regional workloads.
• Expected investment value exceeds USD 500 million, marking one of the largest digital infrastructure projects in Uruguay’s history.
• Incorporates energy-efficient cooling systems, water-recycling technologies, and renewable-energy integration to achieve carbon-neutral operations in line with Google’s global 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy goal.
• Planned to include multiple data halls, administrative buildings, and utility infrastructure to ensure modular scalability and operational resilience.

🔐 Security & Compliance

• Developed under Google’s global security and resilience standards, with 24×7 on-site security, biometric access, and restricted perimeters.
• Expected to meet ISO 27001 (Information Security) and ISO 50001 (Energy Management) standards, ensuring global best practices for reliability and data protection.
• Compliant with Uruguay’s data-sovereignty and privacy regulations, providing secure local hosting for Latin American customers.
• Engineered for concurrent maintainability and fault tolerance, ensuring continuous operations even during power or cooling maintenance cycles.

🌐 Connectivity & Carrier Access

• Strategically positioned near Montevideo’s international connectivity hubs, linking to regional and transoceanic fibre systems connecting Uruguay to Brazil, Argentina, and the United States.
• Designed to be carrier-neutral, supporting multiple telecommunications providers and redundant network paths for resilience and low latency.
• Directly connected to Google’s private global network, enabling high-speed, low-latency connectivity to other Google Cloud regions worldwide.
• Expected to serve as a regional edge node for Google Cloud, improving service availability and latency across South America.

💼 Who It Serves

• Enterprises, financial institutions, and public-sector organisations in Uruguay and across Latin America seeking local, compliant, and secure cloud infrastructure.
• Technology companies, AI developers, and content providers requiring scalable compute and storage resources within the region.
• Telecommunications and service providers looking to interconnect with a hyperscale facility that enhances the South American cloud ecosystem.
• Organizations prioritizing sustainability, benefitting from Google’s renewable-energy integration and environmentally responsible design.