Amazon Web Service, Inc., will be expanding to Fairfax County, creating 500 new IT jobs in the area.
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Wednesday that the company will establish an office in Herndon, Va., to provide cloud computing services to businesses, government and educational organizations.
"Amazon Web Services is a global, universally known company that has a significant Virginia presence as a strong corporate partner and employer," McDonnell said in a press release. "Adding a new office in Fairfax County allows the company close proximity to its IT and government customers in Virginia, and creates 500 highly technical jobs."
The company announced Tuesday it had received authority to operate under a government program designed to streamline cloud computing services, the Associated Press reported.
A $500,000 grant from the Governor’s Opportunity Fund will assist the project.
Amazon Web Services launched in 2006 and provides a cloud infrastructure for government agencies and startup businesses.
"[Amazon Web Service]'s continued growth throughout Virginia is a strong testament to the business climate, available workforce and cost of operations in the Commonwealth," said Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade Jim Cheng.