Albuquerque Journal

Data Center Coming
Molina Healthcare Moving Unit to Mesa del Sol
By Richard Metcalf, Journal Staff Writer

Molina Healthcare Inc. plans to move its information technology operation from its Long Beach, Calif. headquarters to a new 25,000-square-foot data center to be built at Mesa del Sol in Albuquerque.

The data center will open with 15 employees, most being information technology professionals making $70,000 to $100,000 a year, said Molina Chief Information Officer Amir Desai. Only one or two of the company’s current IT professionals are expected to relocate here.

“We’re looking to tap into the existing talent pool,” he said about filling the new jobs.

The one-story building on a two-acre site, expected to open next spring, will be a $25 million project including both construction and equipment costs. Molina will seek silver certification for the building through the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.

“A lot of thought has gone into the building to make sure it’s energy efficient,” Desai said. “A data center uses a lot of power and water.”

Molina administers managed health care programs serving 1.2 million members in 10 states.

The company entered New Mexico in 2004 when it acquired the Cimarron Health Plan. It now has 140 local employees and serves 81,000 primarily low-income members through state programs such as Salud and State Coverage Insurance.

State and local officials participated in a groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday hosted by Forest City
Covington, the developer of 9,000 of Mesa del Sol’s 12,900 total acres. Construction is currently under way on buildings for Schott Solar and Fidelity Investments, both of which will become major employers, as well as others.

“The transformation taking place here in Mesa del Sol is truly remarkable,” said Mayor Martin Chávez, noting a helicopter circling nearby was part of a movie production at Albuquerque Studios a few hundred yards away.

Albuquerque was chosen for the data center because of its comparatively low cost of doing business, educated work force and the fact that it’s free of natural disasters like earthquakes or hurricanes, said George Goldstein, executive vice president at Molina based in Albuquerque.