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Key developments
Reuters exposes fast-tracked off-grid AI power plants
Reuters reported today that at least 57 off-grid U.S. power plants are proposed or under construction to serve individual data centers, totaling 73,000 megawatts of capacity. Its review found more than a dozen projects approved in under a year, often with limited public notice, shell entities, non-disclosure agreements, redactions, or expedited permitting. One example is the Apollo Generating Station in Wood County, Ohio, approved Feb. 3 to serve Meta’s 800-acre Bowling Green data center after Ohio adopted a law allowing some approvals in as little as 45 days without public hearings.
Why it matters
AI data center power demand is creating a parallel generation buildout that may bypass the transparency, environmental review, and public participation normally associated with large power plants.
Sources & driving stories
REUTERS
Reuters coverageTennessee local governments pause data center approvals
Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell signed Executive Order 59 directing Metro departments to support a temporary halt on new large-scale data centers while the city studies impacts on power, water, stormwater, air quality, noise, transportation, public health, and economics. The order defines large-scale facilities as at least 20,000 square feet, 5 megawatts of expected electrical demand, or otherwise substantial infrastructure impact, with departmental recommendations due within two months. Separately, McMinnville and Coffee County unanimously passed moratoria on June 9; McMinnville’s 18-month pause affects a proposed 96,064-square-foot, 25-megawatt Hixson Data Center powered by natural gas and diesel generators.
Why it matters
The actions show local governments are moving from public concern to formal permitting pauses and regulatory reviews before approving additional AI and cloud infrastructure.
Sources & driving stories
NEWS CHANNEL 5 NASHVILLE
News Channel 5 Nashville coverageTIMES FREE PRESS
Times Free Press coverageGoogle commits $1.5B to Alabama expansion
Google announced a $1.5 billion expansion of its Jackson County, Alabama data center campus at the former TVA Widows Creek coal plant, with work planned across 2026 and 2027. The company said it will pay for 100% of its electricity use and directly driven infrastructure costs, has contracted more than 300 megawatts of new regional generation, and is working with TVA and Kairos Power on up to 50 megawatts of advanced nuclear power for data centers. TVA approved the expansion in August 2024, while data center capacity and operational energy use remain confidential under the TVA contract.
Why it matters
The announcement pairs hyperscale growth with explicit cost-allocation and energy-supply pledges as utilities and regulators face pressure to shield ratepayers from data center load growth.
Sources & driving stories
CHATTANOOGA TIMES FREE PRESS
Chattanooga Times Free Press coverageWAFF
WAFF coverageWorth noting
WORTH NOTING
Amazon announces $10B Missouri campus
Amazon and Missouri officials announced a Montgomery County data center campus southeast of New Florence that is expected to create 400 full-time jobs, while residents continue to press questions on water, electric bills, environmental effects, tax abatements, and a pending open-records lawsuit.
WORTH NOTING
Kansas project pitches water savings
Triple Oak Power told Finney County residents its proposed 6,000-acre data center would use about 600 million gallons of water per year versus roughly 3.2 billion gallons now used for irrigation on the land, but residents remain concerned about water quality, erosion, and construction scale.
WORTH NOTING
Moratoria spread beyond Tennessee
Boone County, Indiana adopted a one-year moratorium June 15, Pasco County, Florida is considering a one-year pause with a final vote expected in July, and Milwaukee advanced zoning rules that would ban data centers over 60,000 square feet.
Still unclear
OPEN QUESTION
Will fast-tracked microgrids escape normal review?
Reuters’ finding of 57 off-grid plants totaling 73 GW suggests a growing class of data-center-dedicated generation may be governed by a patchwork of exemptions, expedited state laws, and confidential local arrangements.
OPEN QUESTION
Who ultimately pays for grid capacity?
Google’s ratepayer pledge, TVA’s possible separate data center rate class, and new state laws in Tennessee and Florida all point to unresolved battles over how utilities allocate data center-driven power and infrastructure costs.