Study: Data centers could bring billions in economic activity to NW Indiana

(The Center Square) – A large data center campus could generate billions of dollars in economic activity and support thousands of jobs in northwest Indiana over the next two decades, according to a new study.

The study was authored by Justin Ross, a professor of public finance and economics at Indiana University Bloomington, and Saurav Roychoudhury, a professor of finance and economics at Capital University. The authors modeled the economic effects of a hypothetical hyperscale data center similar in size to projects that Microsoft has announced in LaPorte and other companies have proposed in the region.

The researchers estimated that a 1-gigawatt data center campus would generate about $16.1 billion in regional economic output over 20 years. They also projected the project would support 14,651 construction job-years over a three-year construction period and create $1.08 billion in construction earnings.

Once the facility begins operating, the study estimated it would support about 2,090 jobs across the regional economy and generate about $176 million in annual worker earnings.

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