Kansas Data Center Intel

Recent Kansas data center news

• Nov 6, 2025 · RMI

  How Virtual Power Plants Can Help the United States Win the AI Race

  RMI publishes an analytical brief recommending rapid deployment and novel commercial models for virtual power plants (VPPs) to speed interconnection and reliably supply growing AI/data-center loads in the United States.

  • Main announcement/action: RMI proposes three commercial models (Pass-Through Funding for Utility-Managed VPPs; VPP Capacity Transfer; VPP as Reliability Reinforcement) to enable large loads to sponsor VPP capacity in exchange for expedited interconnection. Key figures and timelines include VPPs could scale to meet over 20% of US peak demand by 2030, Brattle’s finding that 400 MW of VPP resource adequacy costs ~$2 million annually versus ~$43 million for equivalent new gas plants and grid upgrades, and examples of program scale such as California’s DSGS enrolling over 750 MW (including a 500 MW increase during Jan–Oct 2025). Utility and grid timing constraints cited include gas turbine backlogs through at least 2028, average interconnection timelines >5 years, and localized waits (e.g., Dominion warns up to 7 years in Northern Virginia; some DFW data center deliveries delayed to 2027 or later).

  • Background and implementation details: The brief documents operational examples (National Grid Connected Solutions; Green Mountain Power battery programs; Ontario 90 MW residential VPP that enrolled 100,000 homes in six months) and outlines policy and market prerequisites: changes to interconnection policy (e.g., Oregon, Nevada, CAISO, SPP experiments), stronger integrated planning and data access (capacity accreditation, Green Button Connect), and customer protection measures (transparent tariffs, up-front payments/long-term contracts, rate-design evaluations). It emphasizes measurement & verification, transferable capacity credits, and that models shift different financial and delivery risks among large loads, VPP aggregators, and utilities.

• Nov 4, 2025

  Power, Proximity, Policy: The Legal Landscape of Siting Data Centers Near Natural Gas Resources

  Michelman Robinson partners Warren Koshofer and Seth Leibenstein analyze the legal and regulatory considerations for siting data centers near U.S. natural gas resources.

  • Main announcement/action: The article provides a legal and practical guide on siting data centers adjacent to natural gas infrastructure, noting concrete facts such as data center loads often exceeding 100 megawatts per site and that natural gas supplies more than 40% of U.S. electricity. It identifies regional hubs (Texas/Permian Basin; Appalachian Basin — Marcellus & Utica; Midcontinent/Great Plains; Rockies — DJ and Powder River basins; Gulf South — Louisiana & Mississippi) and highlights relevant regulators like ERCOT and FERC, plus contractual vehicles such as PPAs and gas tolling arrangements.
  • Background and details: The piece outlines regulatory and compliance requirements (Clean Air Act permitting, Section 401 water quality certifications, state environmental reviews), flags evolving ESG and carbon disclosure pressures (SEC proposals, IRA incentives), and lists states considering restrictions on fossil-fueled generation for new data centers (Oregon, Virginia, Illinois). Contact details for the authors are provided: Warren Koshofer (212-730-7700; wkoshofer@mrllp.com) and Seth Leibenstein (212-730-7700; sliebenstein@mrllp.com).
• Nov 4, 2025

  Entergy Louisiana and Energy Transfer Sign Agreement That Supports Reliable, Affordable Energy and Economic Growth in North Louisiana

  Entergy Louisiana and Energy Transfer signed a 20-year firm natural gas transportation agreement.

  • Agreement details: Energy Transfer will provide 250,000 MMBtu per day of firm transportation service beginning February 2028 through January 2048, with Entergy having an option to expand delivery capacity; the project includes constructing a 12-mile lateral on Energy Transfer’s Tiger Pipeline with capacity up to 1 Bcf/d to serve Entergy Louisiana’s combined-cycle combustion turbine facilities and support Meta’s hyperscale data center in Richland Parish.
  • Background and implementation: The natural gas quantity is included in Entergy’s financial plan; Entergy Louisiana supplies electricity to more than 1.1 million customers in 58 parishes and is advancing its Louisiana 100 Plan (including a stated $100 million community investment commitment); Energy Transfer operates approximately 140,000 miles of pipeline across 44 states and will source gas from its network connected to major U.S. producing basins.
• Nov 4, 2025

  New Data Center Developments: November 2025

  Data Center Knowledge published a monthly roundup summarizing recent global data center developments and investments across North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Middle East & Africa.

  • Main roundup details: The report aggregates announcements including a $70 billion Pennsylvania initiative launched at the Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit; Amazon’s $8 billion Project Rainier (30 interconnected data centers in Indiana); Google’s multi-billion-dollar West Memphis campus plan; Meta’s >$1.5 billion GW-scale data center in El Paso (expected launch 2028); and a collaboration where OpenAI, Oracle, and Vantage will deliver almost a GW of AI capacity in Port Washington, Wisconsin, with campus construction starting soon and completion targeted for 2028.
  • Energy and implementation details: Highlights include deployment of a 31 MW, 62 MWh BESS by Aligned Data Centers and Calibrant Energy to accelerate site commissioning; DOE opening the Oak Ridge Reservation for private AI data center development; Blue Energy planning a gas-to-small-reactor plant supplying up to 1.5 GW to Crusoe Energy Systems with a planned reactor transition by 2031; and Google committing €5 billion in Belgium plus new PPAs with Eneco/Luminus/Renner. Timelines specified in the article include 2026–2030 for Google’s $15 billion India hub and 2028 targets for several GW-scale facilities.
• Oct 28, 2025

  Data Centers Are Turning to Gas Generators for Prime Power to Eliminate Long Lead Times for Grid Connections

  Data center developers and equipment suppliers are increasingly using natural gas generator sets and packaged generator solutions as near-term prime power to meet rapid AI-driven compute demand.

  • Main announcement/action: Data center developers (notably Joule Capital Partners with Caterpillar and CAT dealer Wheeler Machinery) are deploying natural gas gensets as prime power at large campuses (Millard County, Utah up to 4 GW planned) with fleets of Caterpillar G3520K (2.5 MW each) and >1 GWh battery storage; the Wonder Valley, Alberta project will use onsite natural gas to power an 8-GW data center with the first 1.5 GW scheduled for completion by 2027. Lead times for utility power can be three to seven years, prompting BYOP (bring your own power) and rapid delivery advantages for gas packages.
  • Background and supporting details:Global Market Insights (GMI) valued the global gas generator market at $6.9 billion in 2024, projecting 8.8% CAGR to $16 billion by 2034, with >330 kVA and >750 kVA segments growing fastest; Fidelity Manufacturing expanded staffing from 40 to >500 and opened a second 86,000 sq ft factory (additional 25,000 sq ft production and warehouse planned) to meet data-center-driven demand. Typical large gas engines available up to ~2.5 MW; custom packaged features, ASCE/SEI and local codes, and OSHA/IBC-compliant access (aluminum framing, anti-slip surfaces) are emphasized. Lead times for larger packaged deliveries can be up to one year or more.
• Oct 4, 2025

  Fears of massive battery fires spark local opposition to energy storage projects

  Local governments across the United States have passed temporary moratoriums on development of large lithium-ion battery energy storage systems.

  • Scope and local actions: At least a few dozen localities have adopted temporary moratoriums or are considering bans; examples include Island Park, NY (moratorium passed in July), Maple Valley, WA (six-month moratorium approved in July), and Halstead, KS (voter referendum on Election Day). Opposition cites the Moss Landing, CA fire in January (indoor storage fire that forced evacuation of about 1,500 people) and specific proposed projects such as a 250-megawatt lithium-ion system in the Town of Ulster, NY (opposed by residents). The developer Terra-Gen says its design will prevent fire spread and “poses no credible, scientific-based threat to neighbors, the public or the environment.”

  • Background, deployment and rules: Developers added 4,908 megawatts of battery storage capacity in Q2 2025 (about three-quarters of that in Arizona, California and Texas). New York targets 6,000 MW by 2030 (about half large-scale). Research from BloombergNEF notes large projects commissioned or started since 2024 in Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Australia, Netherlands, Chile, Canada and the U.K. The federal budget preserved key tax credits for qualified storage projects that begin construction within the next eight years, and New York has adopted fire codes requiring modular enclosure design and minimum spacing to limit fire spread. Experts (e.g., Ofodike Ezekoye, UT Austin) say systems are maturing but not foolproof.

• Oct 3, 2025

  Entergy Will Power $4-Billion Google Data Center in Arkansas

  Google announced the first phase of a $4-billion data center campus in West Memphis, Arkansas, to be powered by Entergy using solar and existing generation.

  • Main announcement: Google will build a $4-billion campus sited on 1,100 acres in West Memphis; Entergy Arkansas will power the facility and the contract (described as running “for decades”) includes investment in Cypress Solar — a 600-MW solar and 350-MW battery energy storage facility near Pine Bluff (Jefferson County). Google will cover all energy costs for the project and has committed $25 million to an Energy Impact Fund for regional energy efficiency.
  • Background and details: Entergy Corp. executives said there would be $1.1 billion in net benefits over the life of the contract for Entergy Arkansas customers and that the agreement is “designed to put downward pressure on electricity rates.” The campus may house up to five hyperscale data centers, could be operational within the next two years, and Google applied for an air quality/emissions permit for backup generation limited to rare grid outages. Google also maintains a corporate goal to run data centers on emissions-free energy by 2030 and to have over 10 GW of nuclear power by 2035.
• Oct 2, 2025 · Google

  Google is investing in Arkansas with a new data center, energy efficiency programs and more.

  Google announced a new $4 billion investment in Arkansas through 2027, including its first state data center in West Memphis and programs to boost energy resilience and local AI talent.

  • Main announcement/action: Google will invest $4 billion (described as a two-year $4 billion investment) in Arkansas through 2027, building Google’s first data center in West Memphis, expanding cloud and AI infrastructure, and launching a $25 million Energy Impact Fund targeted at energy efficiency and affordability in Crittenden County.
  • Details and partnerships: Google will collaborate with Entergy to bring a new 600 MW solar project to the grid and implement programs to reduce power usage during peak hours; it will also provide no-cost Google AI courses and Career Certificates in partnership with the Arkansas Department of Commerce, starting with students at the University of Arkansas and Arkansas State University.
• Oct 2, 2025

  Hitachi Energy, Grid United Advance North Plains Connector to Link Eastern and Western Grids

  Hitachi Energy and Grid United have formalized an Engineering Services Agreement (ESA) to advance the North Plains Connector (NPC) HVDC project.

  • Announcement details: The ESA (announced Oct. 2, 2025) tasks Hitachi Energy with early-stage engineering services for the ±525 kV, 3-GW, ~420-mile HVDC line between Colstrip, Montana and endpoints in Center and St. Anthony, North Dakota, including technical specifications for two HVDC converter stations, valve hall layouts, control-system architecture, harmonic mitigation studies, dynamic and steady-state modeling, and AC–DC interface definitions for integration with MISO, SPP, and WECC. Grid United will advance corridor refinement, land-rights acquisition, stakeholder engagement, environmental permitting support, and supply-chain sequencing for long-lead items; procurement timelines will be aligned with permitting and construction schedules.

  • Background and concrete project details: The NPC is a $3.2 billion project that received $700 million from DOE’s GRIP program (with a $2.8 billion recipient cost share); Grid United expects approvals in 2026, potential construction begin in 2028, and operation in 2032. An Astrapé/PNNL-reviewed evaluation estimated an ELCC of ~3,550 MW and quantified reliability benefits (~1,800 MW for WECC, 1,350 MW for SPP, 400 MW for MISO). The ESA is an enabling engineering step but does not constitute a final investment decision.

• Sep 15, 2025 · Rest of World

  Countries are struggling to meet the rising energy demands of data centers

  Microsoft set up a data center in Colón, Querétaro, that has relied on gas-powered generators because it could not plug into Mexico’s transmission and distribution network; environmental filings say generators would supply 70% of the center’s energy for 12 hours/day between February and July 2025 and emit CO2 equivalent to about 54,000 average households.

  • Main action and specifics: Microsoft opened a data center in Colón (began operating early 2024) and received approval to use seven generators after filing that the grid would not be fully operative for Microsoft until mid-2027 due to “long construction times required in [Microsoft’s] contract with CFE.” Documents state the generators would supply 70% of the data center’s energy for 12 hours per day (Feb–Jul 2025) and produce annual CO2 emissions comparable to ~54,000 households.
  • Background and additional details: Mexico hosts ~150 data centers with Big Tech investing over $7 billion since 2020; the Mexican Association of Data Centers estimates 70 additional centers (over $18 billion in investment) over five years and national data centers will require 1.5 GW by 2030. The federal utility CFE has a monopoly on transmission/distribution, the government announced >$8 billion for transmission infrastructure to be completed by 2030 (focused on households), and investment in transmission/distribution fell by 17% and 37% respectively between 2018 and late 2024.