California Data Center Intel

Recent California data center news

• Feb 26, 2026

  Trump Says tech giants should bear greater power costs amid rising bills

  President Donald Trump said he was negotiating pledges from major tech companies to pay a greater share of the energy costs associated with new data centers.

  • Main announcement: During the State of the Union, Trump presented a “ratepayer protection pledge”, saying the administration is negotiating with major tech companies to have them provide for their own power needs or build their own power plants so retail electricity prices will not rise; the White House did not list which companies had signed or provide enforcement details.
  • Background and specifics from the article:Silicon Valley is spending “hundreds of billions of dollars” to build power-hungry data centers, grid upgrades for new sites can reach “billions of dollars”, and companies such as Microsoft and Anthropic have recently pledged to pay higher electricity rates; Briana Kobor (Google) publicly said “We absolutely want to pay our fair share of all costs associated with serving us.”
• Feb 26, 2026

  Reimagining environmental health through AI

  The Government of India approved the IndiaAI Mission in March 2024 with an outlay of ₹10,372 crore.

  • Main announcement/action: The IndiaAI Mission (approved March 2024) has an outlay of ₹10,372 crore and targets expansion of compute (deployment of over 10,000 GPUs), creation of open/high-quality datasets, development of foundational models, startup financing, skills enhancement, and governance frameworks for responsible AI.
  • Background and details: The article documents multiple applied use-cases (air quality forecasting with 89%–98% accuracy for PM2.5/NO2; AI disease surveillance >90% accuracy; a CKD model with ~99% accuracy in Uddanam), flags ethical risks (surveillance, algorithmic bias) and notes the environmental footprint of AI (a UC Riverside/Caltech analysis using a U.S. EPA model estimates billions of dollars in public-health costs linked to data-centre emissions).
• Feb 26, 2026

  Google: Minnesota data centre energy deal includes 30GWh ‘multi-day’ iron-air batteries from Form Energy

  Xcel Energy and Google have announced an agreement to deploy Form Energy iron-air batteries to power a new Google data centre in Pine Island, Minnesota.

  • Main announcement: Xcel Energy will install a 300 MW / 30 GWh Form Energy iron‑air battery system at Google’s Pine Island, Minnesota data centre; the parties say Google will cover all new infrastructure costs and the Electric Service Agreement (ESA) will be submitted to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) for review in the next few weeks. The deal also includes adding 1,900 MW of renewables to the grid (CEAC supporting 1,400 MW wind + 200 MW solar) and a US$50 million investment in Xcel’s Capacity*Connect Programme.

  • Background and implementation details: Form Energy says batteries will be manufactured at Form Factory 1 (Weirton, West Virginia), with FF1 on track to reach 500 MW/year by 2028; Form previously raised US$405 million (Series F) in 2024 and FF1 received up to US$150 million from DOE programmes announced in September 2024. Xcel notes a prior 1 GWh Form Energy project was approved by Minnesota regulators in 2023; the new 30 GWh system is described as the largest battery by energy capacity announced to date.

• Feb 25, 2026

  What the Tech: What AI means for your wallet and environment

  WRDW/WAGT reports on environmental impacts of AI data centers.

  • Main findings: The article cites a 2023 study that U.S. data centers use roughly 4 percent of all electricity generated, a figure that is expected to more than double as new facilities come online; some AI-focused data centers under construction could use as much electricity as 2 million homes. It also notes there are currently ~4,000 data centers in the U.S., with major expansions underway in Virginia, Georgia, Arizona, and Ohio, and that some new facilities are requesting as much power as small cities.
  • Water and usage details: A Department of Energy study found some centers use “millions of gallons every day”, equivalent to the water needs of a town of 50,000 people; a UC Riverside study found each AI chatbot session uses roughly “a half-liter of fresh water” to cool servers. The article gives an example that 3 million simple chatbot messages like “thank you” could consume around 1,500 kilowatt hours, and references President Trump’s “Ratepayer Protection Pledge” encouraging large tech companies to cover their own energy costs.
• Feb 25, 2026

  Federal and State Policymakers Target AI Data Centers as Electricity Costs and Grid Reliability Concerns Mount

  The Trump administration is expected to call on major U.S. technology companies and data center developers to voluntarily commit to a compact to ensure power-needy data centers do not raise household electricity prices or undermine grid reliability.

  • Main announcement: The draft compact would ask participating companies to pay 100% of new power generation costs, fund transmission upgrades, enter long-term electricity contracts, use noncritical backup generation for grid stability, and allow curtailment of data center loads; the pact would also apply to leased/colocated capacity, meaning companies leasing space could not avoid commitments.
  • Background and additional details:More than 40 states have enacted or are considering data center laws; examples include Texas SB 6 (large load framework; 75 MW threshold; PUC may lower threshold and may order emergency load reductions), Oregon POWER Act / H.B. 3546 (requires large users of 20 MW+ to buy from state-regulated utilities for 10 years and pay for needed infrastructure), and the proposed federal GRID Act (would require new data centers with 20 MW+ demand to obtain power off-grid with a 10-year off-ramp). Troutman Pepper Locke is hosting a three-part webinar series on these dynamics in 2026 (dates/times not specified in the article).
• Feb 25, 2026

  No end in sight for data center development in SoCal

  Commercial Observer (citing JLL research) reports that Southern California data center capacity is expected to nearly double in the next few years to meet AI-driven demand.

  • Main announcement: JLL-backed reporting indicates SoCal’s existing data center capacity of 335 megawatts is expected to nearly double as new facilities come online to serve AI workloads; developers are deliberately sizing projects under regulatory thresholds (just under 50 MW or 100 MW) to avoid California Energy Commission oversight. Key concrete examples: Goodman Group is planning a 49.5-megawatt facility named LAX01 in Vernon.
  • Background and regulatory details: Under California law, backup generators for data centers are treated as thermal power plants so projects >50 MW fall under the California Energy Commission for full certification; projects 50–100 MW can seek a Small Power Plant Exemption but may face environmental review and formal hearings if denied. State Sen. Steve Padilla has proposed Senate Bill 58, offering partial sales and use tax exemptions for data center projects that incorporate sustainable energy practices. The article also notes California’s average electricity cost of ~$0.18 per kWh compared with ~$0.10 per kWh in the Pacific Northwest.
• Feb 25, 2026

  Climate Change Solutions - February 24, 2026

  The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) released a newsletter highlighting data center impacts, policy developments on Capitol Hill, and upcoming briefings and events.

  • Main announcement: EESI highlighted rising household energy costs driven in part by data center demand, noting electricity prices have risen by up to 267% since 2020 in high-concentration data center areas and that wildfires cost the United States up to $424 billion annually. The newsletter features the article “Data Center Power Demands Are Contributing to Higher Energy Bills,” a podcast on wildfire philanthropy, and announces briefings including “Understanding Load Growth and Energy Affordability” on Thursday, February 26 (3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m., Rayburn House Office Building, Gold Room (Room 2168) and online).

  • Background and other details: The newsletter summaries recent legislative actions and events: Senate Energy Committee advanced the Critical Mineral Consistency Act of 2025 (S.714); House Committee approved the ACERO Act (H.R.390) to authorize NASA’s ACERO project; Senate Foreign Relations agreed to the Protecting Global Fisheries Act of 2026 (S.1369); House introduced the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 (H.R.7567). Events listed with dates/times/locations:

    • Understanding Load Growth and Energy Affordability — Feb 26, 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m., Rayburn House Office Building, Gold Room (Room 2168) and online
    • Igniting Innovation: Progress and a Path Forward for Wildfire Policy — Mar 3, 3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m., Russell Senate Office Building, Room 385 and online (Reception to follow)
    • Strategies to Lower Utility Bills Now for Households and Small Businesses — Mar 12, 3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m., Rayburn House Office Building, Gold Room (Room 2168) and online
    • 2026 Congressional Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency EXPO and Policy Forum (EXPO 2026) — Jun 24, 9:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m., Rayburn House Office Building Foyer and Gold Room and online
• Feb 25, 2026

  US Roundup: FlexGen updates EMS, LandGate’s BESS site selection tool, ON.Energy-Shoals target data centres, Sunrun’s season of VPP dispatching

  Energy-Storage.news reports a roundup of recent industry announcements from FlexGen, LandGate, ON.energy & Shoals, and Sunrun.

  • FlexGen announced an updated HybridOS EMS with a new user interface, real-time and historical data, integrated market prices, mobile app access, an augmentation prediction and diagnostics dashboard, charge limit handler, and native CAN support; LandGate launched its Battery Storage Analysis tool to produce automated ‘Battery Storage Due Diligence Reports’ and assess interconnection, arbitrage, queue competition and environmental risks; ON.energy and Shoals agreed to deploy multiple GWs of critical power systems pairing ON.energy’s medium-voltage AI UPS with Shoals’ DC Recombiner; Sunrun completed a VPP dispatch season with PG&E totaling more than 1,200 dispatch hours across over 1,000 customers, with participants earning US$150 per battery.

  • Background and supporting details: FlexGen completed its acquisition of most assets and IP from Powin in August 2025 and supports over 25GWh of BESS across 10 countries; FlexGen recently put two utility-scale BESS totalling 700MWh into operation in Wisconsin and Iowa; ON.energy previously announced a 5GW transformer supply agreement with Prolec GE (late 2025); Sunrun’s Local PeakShift Power VPP operated as part of PG&E’s SAVE program (tests April–June 2025; dispatched July–October 2025); the article also references interconnection reform discussions and noise/permitting issues for BESS projects (Idaho Power case, Wärtsilä commentary).

• Feb 24, 2026

  The POWER Interview: Former SpaceX Exec Drives Arbor’s Turbine Innovation

  Arbor Energy announced a funding and deployment plan to commercialize its modular sCO2 turbines.

  • Arbor Energy raised $55-million in a Series A to support deployment and will complete demonstration of its 1-MW pilot ATLAS while furthering the design of its 25-MW HALCYON commercial sCO2 turbine; the company says its first HALCYON turret is on track to come online by 2028 and it aims to manufacture gigawatts’ worth of turbines by 2030.
  • Context and implementation details: The announcement (in an interview with POWER) highlights supply-chain backlogs for traditional large-frame turbines, Arbor’s use of additive manufacturing in Los Angeles to avoid blade/vanes bottlenecks, a modular 25-MW design that can scale to 100 MW–1 GW+ on a site, and plans to scale production to >1 GW/year by 2030; CEO Brad Hartwig (former SpaceX engineer) led the transition from pilot to commercial development.
• Feb 24, 2026

  Soluna CEO on Stranded Renewables, AI Data Centers, and a 'Grid Revolution'

  Soluna Holdings is expanding its co-located renewable-powered data center model from bitcoin mining into AI, announcing a multi-site buildout including Project Kati and Project Dorothy and a 3-gigawatt project pipeline.

  • Main announcement/action: Soluna is transitioning from bitcoin-focused facilities to AI/high-performance computing campuses co-located with utility-scale wind and solar plants; key project details include a 3-gigawatt pipeline, Project Kati (166 MW planned over two phases; Kati 1 initial energization with phased commissioning through 2026; 83 MW bitcoin side; starting with 100 MW AI capacity and planned scale to >300 MW), and Project Dorothy (operational, providing 98 MW for Bitcoin hosting at two Texas sites; expanded partnership with Blockware adding 6 MW to Dorothy 1).
  • Background and implementation details: The model monetizes curtailed/stranded renewable generation by buying excess power from host plants, Soluna claims its builds are 18% cleaner than traditional data centers, targets single-tenant hyperscalers and neo-clouds on long-term contracts, and prioritizes AI training workloads (batchable, remote) rather than low-latency inference; utilities and transmission constraints (e.g., California 3.4 TWh curtailed cited) are central to the rationale.