Microsoft West Des Moines
West Des Moines, Polk County, IA
Microsoft West Des Moines is a mapped data center in Polk County, IA, operated by Microsoft Data Center LLC and ultimately owned by Microsoft Corporation. DataCentersExposed has documented 360 MW of reported power capacity at this site.
Reporting by Eric Keller · Updated Jun 14, 2026
Overview
Microsoft West Des Moines is a hyperscale data center in West Des Moines, Polk County, Iowa, operated by Microsoft Data Center LLC and ultimately owned by Microsoft Corporation. Operational since 2014, the site has a reported power capacity of 360 MW, drawing electricity from Midamerican Energy Co on the MISO grid.
Operator chain
- Ultimate parentMicrosoft Corporation
- Files asMicrosoft Data Center LLC
- This facilityMicrosoft West Des Moines
The grid behind this site, right now
source: MISO · gridstatus- Natural Gas33.4%
- Coal28.2%
- Solar13.1%
- Imports11.0%
- Nuclear9.7%
- Other3.0%
- Wind1.6%
Real-time generation mix for the MISO grid this site draws from, as of Jul 15, 2026, 9:20 PM. ISO-wide, not this facility's own metering. Source: gridstatus.
Grid & water — why here
source: HIFLD · EPAThe closest existing grid infrastructure and the municipal water system this location sits in — the same constraints the buildout model screens on (it won't site a campus more than ~2 km from a substation or ~5 km from municipal water). Distances are straight-line to public HIFLD/EPA features, not a metered connection.
In the news
source: Google News- Iowa has more than a dozen hyperscale data centers. See where.AOL.com· Jul 14, 2026
- Big data center planned near Wichita FallsAOL.com· Jul 13, 2026
- UPDATED Another big data center is headed for the Wichita Falls areaAOL.com· Jul 13, 2026
- Microsoft Shares Data Center Campus Power and Water UsageData Center Richness | Substack· Jul 13, 2026
- Ida County joins Siouxland District Health DepartmentAOL.com· Jul 10, 2026
- Town Residents Sue Microsoft Over Data Center NoiseNewser· Jul 7, 2026
Tax breaks & subsidies
source: Good Jobs First / GASB 77No per-deal tax break is linked to this site yet. No state discloses the recipient of a data-center abatement at the facility level, so per-site deals are rare in the public record. If you have a development agreement or board resolution for this site, send it to us.
Water use
No measured record exists, so this is a low-confidence model from 360 MW (disclosed IT power): 1.8 L/kWh cooling (temperate climate) + 0.55 gal/kWh embedded in MISO grid mix. How we estimate. Have a utility document? Send it and we'll replace this with the real figure.
EPA permits & violations
source: EPA ECHONo reported violations as of last sync.
Air quality near this site
source: AirNowAir Quality Index from the nearest AirNow reporting area (Des Moines), as of 2026-06-10. Regional context — not this facility's own emissions.
Who lives nearby
source: Census ACS 2023Demographics of the census tract this facility sits in (American Community Survey 5-year estimates). Environmental-justice context for who bears the local impacts.
Nearest school
source: HIFLD / NCESThe nearest public school, Walnut Creek Campus in West Des Moines, is 0.3 mi from this site (147 students). 3 public schools sit within a mile of the site.
Schools are sensitive receptors for the noise, backup-generator exhaust, and traffic a large data center brings. Straight-line distance to the nearest public school (HIFLD/NCES, US public schools only).
Hearings timeline
No public-hearing records linked to this site yet. We surface planning-commission and board-of-supervisors dates when a record names a facility. If you know of a hearing on this site, tell us.