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Connecticut Data Center Intel
Latest data center news, projects, power and policy across Connecticut — updated daily.
Recent Connecticut data center news
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Targeted Pressure: How Chinese Manufacturing Competition Impacts US States
The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) has published a report finding Chinese industrial policy is reshaping global manufacturing and harming industries across every U.S. state.
- Main finding & method: The ITIF report (June 1, 2026) analyzes one “national power industry” per state using County Business Patterns employment data, HS/SITC export proxies, and global market-share series to conclude that state-backed Chinese subsidies, export pushes, and overcapacity are driving down prices and pressuring U.S. producers in sectors such as semiconductors, batteries, aircraft, and fabricated metals.
- Key facts, numbers, and timelines:China plans ~$150 billion in semiconductor investment through 2030 vs. $52 billion under the U.S. CHIPS funding; the report cites $63.3 billion Chinese semiconductor spending in H1 2025, TSMC’s $165 billion U.S. investment announcement, GE Appliances’ $490 million Appliance Park investment (2025), and state/national export shares and HS-code trade series used throughout the analyses.
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NextEra Will Buy Dominion Energy in Largest-Ever Electric Utility Deal
NextEra Energy has announced it will buy Dominion Energy in an all-stock deal valued at about $67 billion.
- Deal terms and governance: NextEra shareholders will own 74.5% of the combined company and Dominion investors 25.5%; the combined company will trade under NextEra on the NYSE as NEE, own 110 GW of generation capacity, and have a board consisting of 10 NextEra and 4 Dominion directors. The announcement was made on May 18; John Ketchum will serve as chairman and CEO and Robert Blue as president and CEO of regulated utilities.
- Financial and operational details: The transaction value is about $67 billion; NextEra reported an enterprise value of about $303 billion (about one-third debt) and Dominion an enterprise value of about $111 billion (about $50 billion in debt). The companies highlighted commitments including bill credits, continued investments in generation, reliability and storm resiliency, and retention of dual headquarters in Juno Beach, Florida and Richmond, Virginia.
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Reports Say NextEra in Talks to Acquire Dominion Energy
NextEra Energy is reportedly in talks to acquire Dominion Energy.
- Deal details and timing: The article reports a potential mostly-stock transaction valuing Dominion at about $66 billion, with analysts saying NextEra would offer about 0.8 of its own shares for each Dominion share plus some cash; the deal could be announced as soon as May 18. Analysts also estimate NextEra shareholders would own about three-quarters of the combined company.
- Background and financial context: The report includes company valuations and finances: NextEra enterprise value ≈ $303 billion (≈1/3 debt); Dominion enterprise value ≈ $111 billion (≈$50 billion debt); NextEra market cap ≈ $195 billion, Southern Co. ≈ $104 billion; the article references related transactions and infrastructure investments (e.g., Duane Arnold restart investment > $800 million, Crossroads-Hobbs-Roadrunner transmission $291.6 million).
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Interview: Unison Energy CEO on Data Centers Turning to On-Site Power
Unison Energy named Mariko McDonagh Meier as CEO in January 2026.
- Main announcement: Unison Energy appointed Mariko McDonagh Meier as CEO in January 2026, and the company is positioning its behind-the-meter CHP and microgrid model to supply large energy users—especially data centers—facing interconnection delays.
- Background and details:On-site, dispatchable natural gas generation (turbines/engines) is being contracted under long-term (typ. 20-year) agreements, with pipelines spanning hundreds of megawatts to gigawatts, phased builds (phase one often 50–100 MW), and historical contract-to-commissioning timelines of about two years (subject to 70-week equipment lead times); recent deployment example includes a CHP project with General Mills in Missouri.
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Meet the academics refusing to use generative AI
Several researchers have announced they are abstaining from using generative AI tools.
- Main action: Several individual researchers (including Danielle Crowley at Bangor University, Hugh Possingham at the University of Queensland, Audrey Moores at McGill University, Tanisha Jowsey at Bond University, Juan Rocha at the Stockholm Resilience Centre, Michaela Socolof at MIT and Elizabeth Wolkovich at the University of British Columbia) say they are purposefully abstaining from using generative AI because of concerns about copyright/consent, transparency of training data, accuracy/hallucinations, and environmental impacts; some have adopted explicit policies (for example, Wolkovich will not chair defences or join committees where students use genAI for writing).
- Background and evidence: Surveys and studies cited include a Nature survey of ~5,000 researchers showing high acceptance for AI editing but far lower use for text generation, an Elsevier survey of 3,234 researchers reporting 58% use of AI, and a Patterns study estimating 2025 global AI system footprints of 32.6–79.7 million tonnes CO2 and 312.5–764.6 billion litres of water; other factual details include specific examples of AI errors (hallucinated citations and incorrect molecular depictions) and published commentaries calling for restrictions on genAI in chemistry and qualitative research.
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365 Data Centers Leverages Collective[i] to See Double-Digit Revenue Growth Within Six Months
365 Data Centers has announced a multi-year agreement with Collective[i] and reports measurable revenue performance improvements following deployment.
- Main announcement: 365 Data Centers entered a multi-year agreement with Collective[i] to embed Collective[i]’s time-series neural network intelligence into 365’s go-to-market systems; within six months 365 reported >15% win rate increase, 35% reduction in sales cycle length, 20% productivity increase, 34% growth in contact database, and record bookings in Q4 2025 with continued outperformance in Q1 2026.
- Implementation & background: The deployment replaced a fragmented stack with a single dynamic intelligence layer embedded in existing systems of record (ambient automation, real-time buyer risk surfacing, centralized deal collaboration); 365’s Revenue Operations and Sales teams completed the embedment and reported results as concrete operational metrics (productivity, contact capture, win rates, sales cycle length).
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Small, connected data centers will power AI, a builder says
Gray Wolf Data Centers, launched by Pete Sacco (founder and CEO of PTS Data Center Solutions), is building a proof-of-concept cluster of small data centers in Connecticut to support low-latency AI inferencing.
- Main announcement: Gray Wolf is developing a distributed model of clustered small data centers (targeting 5-20 MW per site) as an alternative to hyperscale facilities; the first proof-of-concept is in Connecticut, and Sacco proposes building many 10-MW sites (example: 120 x 10-MW instead of a 1,200-MW plant) that operate as a distributed system/DAO.
- Background and details: Sacco cited interconnection waits up to five years and community pushback as drivers; planned local power options include grid interconnection, microgrids (solar + batteries), waste-to-energy, a potential proliferation of hydrogen, and eventual use of small nuclear (~8 years) and fusion in the longer term; he claims generation at sub 10 cents/kWh with options to sell power at ~20 cents/kWh, contrasting with local retail rates like ~30 cents/kWh in Connecticut.
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States Reconsider Data Center Tax Incentives
The National Conference of State Legislatures released a report highlighting states reconsidering data center tax incentives.
- Key findings:38 states offer data center tax incentives; at least 9 states have considered repealing incentives this year; lawmakers in 28 states have introduced bills to scale back or modify programs. The report also notes more than 4,000 data centers operating nationwide with a heavy concentration in Virginia.
- Policy responses and fiscal details: States such as Connecticut, Georgia, and Washington have proposed “off-ramps” to phase out incentives for future projects; Colorado and New Hampshire explored stricter energy and labor requirements (none advanced this year). At least 10 states forgo > $100 million annually in incentives; Texas and Virginia each lose up to $1 billion per year. Lawmakers are generally tightening programs by adding requirements tied to energy use, wages, or investment levels.
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North Dakota Regulators Can’t Help Blumenthal on Data Center Oversight
The North Dakota Public Service Commission said it cannot provide key information to Sen. Richard Blumenthal because it does not regulate data centers.
- Limited response to Blumenthal: The PSC will submit a response to Sen. Richard Blumenthal but said it “does not regulate” data centers and will limit the scope of information provided; Chair Randy Christmann warned against setting a precedent of responding to inquiries from all 535 members of Congress.
- Approved temporary variance for power project: Regulators granted a temporary variance allowing site preparation (including grading) for a $110 million project — a new substation and a 1.74-mile, 345-kilovolt transmission line to serve an Applied Digital facility expected to require up to 280 megawatts at peak; Minnkota Power Cooperative will own and operate the infrastructure and Applied Digital will fund the project upfront at no cost to other rate-payers; full project approval is pending.
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US ROUNDUP: BESS developers highlight ‘bring your own capacity’ model in data centre announcements
Eos Energy Enterprises and Turbine-X have announced a joint development agreement (JDA) to deploy private power infrastructure for AI data centres.
- Main announcement: Under the JDA, Turbine-X is targeting up to 2GWh of Eos battery energy storage systems across a defined project pipeline over the next 36 months, with initial deployments targeted for 2027; the solution pairs Turbine-X simple-cycle turbine generation with Eos BESS (Znyth) and projects are designed to support multi-hundred-MW deployments per site under milestones set by a joint development advisory committee.
- Other details & related actions:CPower and Vertiv integrated Vertiv EnergyCore Grid BESS with CPower’s VPP to monetise BTM storage (including a monetised 1MW microgrid at Vertiv’s Ohio facility) and support PJM services; Elevate Renewables closed a US$50 million supplier finance facility (arranged by Rabobank) for a solar-plus-storage project (Prospect Power, 150MW/600MWh, under construction near Virginia, operations scheduled mid-2026, with a 15-year PPA with Dominion Energy Virginia).