Amazon investing $7.8 bn more in Ohio-based cloud computing ops: Officials

Amazon's profitable cloud business will invest roughly USD 7.8 billion by the end of 2029 to expand its data centre operations in central Ohio, state leaders announced on Monday, further advancing the state's efforts to establish itself as the Midwest's technology hub.

The new investments by Amazon Web Services, or AWS, were announced by Republican Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, who leads the governor's technology office. The financial outlay further cements Ohio as the heart of our nation's technology and innovation, the governor said in a statement.

AWS launched its first data centres in the region in 2016 and currently operates campuses in two counties in central Ohio, home to the capital city of Columbus. The administration said numerous locations are being considered as sites for the new data centres, in a selection to be announced later this year.

The cloud computing company is now responsible for the second largest private sector investment in the state's history,