Google Building $1 Billion UK Headquarters

Google will spend $1 billion to construct its new UK headquarters. The announcement was made the same day in which Sony announced that it would sell its NYC headquarters for $1.1 billion.

Google recently purchases 2.4 acres of land in London’s Kings Cross Central development and it will use that space to build a 1-million-square-foot office.

While Google will spend $1 billion to build up the project, it could be worth an estimated $1.6 billion when completed.

According to Google’s Vice President for Northern and Central Europe Matt Brittin:

“This is a big investment by Google, we’re committing further to the UK — where computing and the web were invented. It’s good news for Google, for London and for the UK.”

Once finished employees from Google’s London offices will move into the new building.

Google will begin its $1 billion build in 2013 and it will finish the project in 2016.

Google, Inc. has become quite the real estate developer in recent years, in fact this is the second time Google has spent more than $1 billion on real estate. Back in December 2010 the company purchased a 2.9-million-square-foot building at New York’s 111 Eighth Avenue. Google paid an estimated $1.9 billion for the NYC property.

With more than $44.6 billion cash on hand Google has money to throw around and as real estate tends to do in big cities, those properties will likely be worth even more money in the near future.