Microsoft has acquired 205 acres of land near its multi-billion dollar Racine County, Wisconsin, data center development.

First reported by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Microsoft spent $33.9 million on the land across several purchases.

The cloud company acquired the land in parcels - 69 acres along Louis Sorenson Road, in Mount Pleasant, for $12.4m; 64 acres for $14.04m, 32.1 acres for $8.8m; 30 acres for $6.7m; and another 10 acres for $800,000.

The company has not commented on what it plans to do with the land, but will likely use it for future data center developments.

In late 2023, the company spent $176m to purchase more than 1,000 acres in Mount Pleasant - most of which were previously owned by Foxconn - to build a data center campus. This May, the company said that it would spend some $3.3bn by 2026 on the site, as well as on training local talent and building an AI Co-Innovation Lab.

Microsoft and National Grid Renewables will also build a 250MW solar project in Wisconsin that is expected to begin operating in 2027.

“Wisconsin has a rich and storied legacy of innovation and ingenuity in manufacturing,” Brad Smith, vice chair and president of Microsoft, said in May.

“We will use the power of AI to help advance the next generation of manufacturing companies, skills, and jobs in Wisconsin and across the country. This is what a big company can do to build a strong foundation for every medium, small, and start-up company and non-profit everywhere.”