Digital Realty has announced it has reached an agreement to acquire 424 acres of undeveloped land in Loudoun County, Virginia for a total purchase price of $236.5 million, or approximately $558,000 per acre. The site is adjacent to Washington Dulles International Airport and located near bulk transmission lines as well as a major fiber path.
The site is also located less than four miles from Digital Realty's existing data center campuses in Ashburn, Virginia. Commencement of development will be subject to market demand, and delivery will be phased to meet future customer growth requirements upon build-out and lease-up of the company's existing Ashburn campus capacity.
"We are pleased to expand our footprint and strengthen our position in Northern Virginia, the largest and most important data center market in the world," said A. William Stein, chief executive officer, Digital Realty. "Customers are looking for long-term commitment, along with the flexibility to support their deployments and connection nodes, as well as the ability to land and expand within the same location – all of which align perfectly with our Connected Campus™ strategy."
"We have leased more than 100 MW of capacity in Northern Virginia over the past 12 months, and we continue to see broad-based demand going forward. This land acquisition provides the foundation for Digital Realty's next phase of growth in Northern Virginia and will enable us to continue to support years of customer expansion, while broadening our positive impact on the local economy," added Michael Darragh, senior vice president of acquisitions, Digital Realty.
This acquisition builds upon Digital Realty's investment in Northern Virginia, where it has maintained a meaningful presence since 2007. Over the past six years, Digital Realty has invested approximately $1.3 billion in new development and currently employs over 160 full-time employees in Northern Virginia. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2018 and is subject to customary closing conditions.
