Illinois Data Center Intel

Recent Illinois data center news

• Jan 9, 2026

  Meta Locks In Up to 6.6 GW of Nuclear Power Through Deals With Vistra, Oklo, and TerraPower

  Meta announced agreements with Vistra, Oklo, and TerraPower to secure up to 6.6 GW of nuclear capacity by 2035.

  • Main announcement and deal scope: Meta will underwrite a suite of nuclear deals that collectively target up to 6.6 GW by 2035, including a 20-year PPA with Vistra for 2,176 MW plus 433 MW of uprates (2,609 MW total) that begin deliveries in late 2026 and reach full 2,609 MW by 2034; an Oklo-backed Aurora campus up to 1.2 GW in Pike County, Ohio (pre-construction and site work beginning 2026, first phase online as early as 2030, full 1.2 GW by 2034); and TerraPower funding for two Natrium units (690 MWe) targeted as early as 2032 plus Meta rights to energy from up to six additional Natrium units (2.1 GW) targeted by 2035.
  • Background, implementation details, and context: Meta’s support includes prepayments and long-term PPAs to shift early-stage capital and risk onto Meta to help developers secure fuel, permits, and financing; Vistra’s three plants were acquired as part of a $3.4 billion Energy Harbor transaction (March 2024); PJM capacity prices signaled tight markets (clearing at $269.92/MW-day and hitting the $329/MW-day cap in subsequent auctions), underscoring the near-term need for firm capacity in the PJM region.
• Jan 9, 2026

  Meta Announces 6.6 GW Of Nuclear Energy Projects To Power AI Revolution

  Meta has announced agreements with Vistra, TerraPower and Oklo to secure nuclear power for its Prometheus AI supercluster at a New Albany, Ohio data centre.

  • Main announcement: Meta will secure up to 6.6 GW of power by 2035 from agreements with Vistra, TerraPower and Oklo to support the Prometheus supercluster (expected online sometime in 2026). Vistra signed 20-year power purchase agreements to provide more than 2,600 MW from Beaver Valley, Davis-Besse and Perry; TerraPower deals fund two projects that could begin generating by 2032 with rights to more projects targeted by 2035; Oklo’s advanced nuclear campus in Pike County, Ohio could come online as soon as 2030, and Meta may prepay for power to advance the Aurora powerhouse deployment.
  • Background and related details: Meta previously signed a 20-year deal with Constellation Energy to buy Clinton plant power from 2027; rivals Google, Amazon and Microsoft have also struck nuclear-related deals (Google backing Kairos Power SMRs; Amazon/NextEra support to restart Duane Arnold; Microsoft with Three Mile Island/Crane restart plans).
• Jan 9, 2026

  Environmental AI Governance: U.S. and China Have Different Roads to developing Green AI Systems

  Jianyin Roachell argues that the United States and China are pursuing divergent approaches to govern AI’s environmental footprint: the U.S. relies on bottom-up, market and state-level measures, while China uses top-down national planning such as EWCRT and mandates for renewable energy in data centers.

  • Main announcement/action: The article contrasts U.S. decentralized, market-driven responses with China’s top-down EWCRT (East-West Computing Resources Transmission) strategy that directs new data centers to western provinces (Sichuan, Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Ningxia) to leverage cooler climates and abundant wind/solar; China projects data centers could consume 400 TWh annually (~3.2% of electricity) and the NDRC issued guidelines in March 2025 requiring increased renewable electricity shares for big data hubs. The piece cites concrete projects and deals: Meta’s 20-year PPA for a 1.1 GW nuclear plant in Illinois, local proposals for gas-fired plants by Entergy to power Meta, and the $226 million Lin-gang underwater data center project in Shanghai combining renewables and deep-sea cooling.
  • Background and other details: The U.S. relies on state tax exemptions (as many as 42 states) and state-level rules (e.g., Virginia 2024 PUE bill; Oregon 2025 water reporting), plus third-party verification like LEED; grassroots protests and state regulatory drafts (Texas, California, Michigan, Minnesota) are shaping policy. Research cited estimates the East-West Data Project could reduce 11,500 Mt CO2 between 2020 and 2050, but China’s grid remains ~60% coal, posing a continued emissions risk unless renewables scale faster.
• Jan 9, 2026

  CES2026: Quantum Computing Leaders Map Next Phase in AI Age

  A CES panel of industry and government representatives outlined a roadmap emphasizing hybrid quantum-classical systems, international research ties, workforce development, supply-chain coordination, and near-term engineering and policy constraints.

  • Main announcement and roadmap details: Panelists from Dell Technologies, Amazon Web Services, the Quantum Economic Development Consortium, and the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade said progress requires coordination across infrastructure, workforce, supply chains, and public policy; referenced near-term target years 2028, 2030, and DARPA’s goal of useful quantum computing by 2033.

    • Event: CES panel in Las Vegas, Jan. 8, 2026; subject: quantum computing roadmap, hybrid systems, policy and engineering constraints; participants discussed hardware R&D, post-quantum security, and international collaboration.

  • Background, funding, and concrete commitments: The Department of Energy has committed $625 million over five years to support quantum information science research centers; Colorado committed $44 million in tax credits and a loan-loss reserve program for early-stage quantum companies; Colorado signed government-to-government agreements with the United Kingdom and Finland; AWS noted hardware R&D in Pasadena, California and an internal post-quantum security team; panelists highlighted narrow, internationally distributed supply chains (cryogenics, refrigeration components).

• Jan 9, 2026

  Gov. JB Pritzker signs sweeping Illinois energy law boosting batteries and renewables that GOP opposed

  Gov. JB Pritzker signed the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act into law on Jan. 8, 2026, authorizing battery storage deployment, enabling renewable integration, lifting a moratorium on new large-scale nuclear construction, and expanding authority for long-term contracts and pilot geothermal funding.

  • Main action: Governor JB Pritzker signed the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act at Joliet Junior College; the law promotes battery storage, makes wind and solar more effective, lifts an existing moratorium on new large-scale nuclear construction, authorizes the Illinois Commerce Commission to sign long-term contracts, funds geothermal pilot programs, and increases subsidies for home energy retrofits. The law is a 1,000-plus-page measure and batteries envisioned include a target deployment of 3 gigawatts by 2031, with upfront costs financed partly via utility bill surcharges paid by customers.
  • Background and details: The bill resulted from negotiations among lawmakers, organized labor, environmental interests and others in response to surging electricity demand (including from data centers and AI) and follows the 2021 Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) and the state’s plan to retire 28 GW of coal and natural-gas capacity by 2045. The Illinois Power Agency (IPA) estimated deployment costs and bill impacts (see price_information), and the measure passed with no Republican votes and drew GOP criticism for expanding regulatory authority and imposing consumer surcharges.
• Jan 8, 2026

  AI Race Fires Up Market for Europe Data Center Backed Bonds

  At least five issuers plan to sell asset-backed or commercial mortgage-backed securities tied to European data center campuses in 2026.

  • Main announcement: At least five issuers are preparing asset-backed or commercial mortgage-backed securities (ABS/CMBS) linked to European data center campuses in 2026, targeting a combined volume of €3–€5 billion ($3.5–$5.8 billion); named sponsors include KKR-backed CyrusOne, Blue Owl Capital-owned Stack Infrastructure, and EQT-backed EdgeConneX and the moves mirror US securitization practices.
  • Background and details:US issuance topped $15 billion last year and securitizations are typically backed by data center leases with end users such as Meta and Microsoft; the article notes operational risks (obsolescence, power/cooling demands, lease renewal uncertainty), a CyrusOne outage that delayed a US commercial mortgage bond sale (may be revived in early 2026), and regulatory constraints such as Ireland’s temporary grid connection moratorium (recently lifted with new stipulations).
• Jan 7, 2026

  Report: Dallas’ Sports-Focused PE Firm Arctos Acquired by KKR at a $1B Valuation

  KKR has agreed to acquire Dallas-based Arctos Partners at a $1 billion valuation (potentially rising to $1.5 billion with incentives), according to Bloomberg.

  • Deal details and immediate actions: The acquisition values Arctos Partners at $1 billion, with incentives that could boost valuation to $1.5 billion; under the agreement Ian Charles and other senior Arctos executives will receive shares in KKR, and KKR and Arctos are seeking approval from the leading U.S. sports leagues to complete the transaction.
  • Background and related business lines: In 2024 Arctos closed its Sports Partners Fund II with more than $4.1 billion in capital commitments, bringing Arctos’ aggregate sports-related assets under management to approximately $7 billion; in September Arctos launched Arctos Capital Markets to connect high-net-worth investors with team ownership opportunities, and via its Keystone Real Estate strategy Arctos is an investment partner in the Element Critical data center platform (facilities in Austin, Houston, and Chicago) alongside Mercuria, 26North, and Safanad.
• Jan 6, 2026

  Global Data Centers Poised for an ‘Investment Supercycle,’ JLL Says

  JLL’s 2025 outlook projects global data center capacity will nearly double by 2030, driven primarily by AI demand and power-driven site selection changes.

  • Main announcement/action: JLL forecasts global capacity rising from ~103 GW to 200 GW by 2030, requiring ~$3 trillion over the next five years (including $1.2 trillion in real estate asset value creation and $870 billion in new debt financing); current market fundamentals include ~97% global occupancy and ~77% of construction pipeline pre-committed, with lease rates forecast to grow at ~5% CAGR through 2030.
  • Background and details: AI workloads expected to grow from ~25% (2025) to 50% by 2030 with an inflection around 2027 (inference surpasses training); power constraints are shifting siting to “power opportunistic” locations (e.g., Wisconsin, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, rural Illinois, Pennsylvania), equipment lead times average 33 weeks, grid-connection timelines often >4 years, and financing is maturing (core strategies now ~25% of fundraising) amid an “infrastructure investment supercycle.”
• Jan 6, 2026

  Data Center Jobs: Engineering, Construction, Commissioning, Sales, Field Service and Facility Tech Jobs Available in Major Data Center Hotspots

  Data Center Frontier, in partnership with Pkaza Critical Facilities Recruiting, published a monthly roundup of current data center job openings on its jobs board.

  • Monthly jobs roundup: The post lists roughly 15–18 open roles (examples: Data Center Facility Technician, Electrical Commissioning Engineer, Construction Project Manager, Senior Electrical Engineer, Production Architect, Strategic Sales Account Manager, Mechanical Engineer, Site Selection Manager/Director/VP, Electrical Project Manager, Electrical Superintendent, Project Executive, MEP Construction Project Manager, Mechanical Commissioning Engineer, Engineering Design Director, Navy Nuke Facility Technician) with locations across the United States including Impact, TX; Ashburn, VA; Dallas, TX; Atlanta, GA; Reading, PA; Allentown, PA; Charlotte, NC; New Albany, OH; Lyndhurst, NJ; Boulder, CO; Richmond, VA; Austin, TX.
  • Role and employer context: Positions are listed with mission-critical data center providers, engineering design and commissioning firms, A/E/C architecture firms, equipment rental providers, electrical contractors and general contractors; listings repeatedly cite energy efficiency, sustainable design, and AI infrastructure support, and several technician roles explicitly note acceptance of Navy Nuke / military veterans.
• Jan 5, 2026

  Beyond Energy Use: Strategies for Sustainable Data Center Operations

  The article argues that data center operators must prioritize sustainable operations as rapid US data center growth is straining regional grids and driving a large e-waste burden.

  • Main announcement/action: The piece calls on data center operators to adopt sustainable operations and circular lifecycle practices (modular/repairable systems, component-level upgrades, secure sanitization and certified reuse/resale) to reduce grid strain and e-waste; it cites 1,240 data centers built or approved in the US by end of 2024 and urges adoption of standards such as NIST 800-88 and ISO 27040, and use of R2v3 / e-Stewards certified ITAD partners.
  • Background and details: The article summarizes evidence and policy responses: Virginia data centers consumed about 26% of state electricity in 2023 (with North Dakota 15%, Nebraska 12%), Illinois bills H.B. 3758 / S.B. 2497 target 15 GW of state energy storage and establish a virtual power plant program, California enforces efficiency/carbon rules via Title 24; global e-waste was 62 million tons in 2022 and a study warns generative AI could add 1.2–5 million tons annually; used hardware may retain hundreds of thousands of dollars in residual value.