Michigan Data Center Intel

Recent Michigan data center news

• Dec 12, 2025

  ‘Project Cannoli’: Developer pitches 1-gigawatt data center for Van Buren Township

  Panattoni Development Co. has proposed a roughly 1 gigawatt data center in Van Buren Township (referred to as “Project Cannoli”) and held a public open house; a zoning request could go before the Van Buren Township Planning Commission on Jan. 14.

  • Project details and developer actions: The proposal describes ~1 gigawatt of load across three data center buildings and a 30,000-square-foot office, totaling about 800,000 square feet; one building is reported as water-cooled (potentially ~750,000 gallons per day) and the developer indicated possible use of diesel backup generators. The developer (Panattoni) says the unnamed client is a Fortune 50 company, many township officials signed nondisclosure agreements, and the developer expects to request an additional 50% tax break under Public Act 198.
  • Background, concerns, and next steps: Local residents and officials raised ratepayer, water pollution, and environmental justice concerns (MiEJScreen percentiles in adjacent areas cited as 84th and 82nd). State Rep. Reggie Miller criticized NDAs and lack of regulation; DTE stated that Michigan law prohibits utility customers from subsidizing data centers. Planning Commission meeting details:
    • Date/time: Jan. 14, 5:30 p.m.
    • Location: Board of Trustees Room, Township Hall, 46425 Tyler Road, Van Buren Township, MI 48111 (attendance via Zoom available per township link).
• Dec 12, 2025

  Washington Township data center proposal receives 170-plus comments ahead of hearing

  Washington Township planning officials postponed a rezoning decision for a Prologis data center application.

  • Postponement and public comment: After a three-hour public hearing, the planning commission postponed the rezoning decision for one month citing overwhelming public input (over 170 emailed responses, majority opposed). The proposed site is 312 acres on the south side of 32 Mile Road (between M-53 and Powell Road); Prologis was told it must convert a conditional rezoning application to a traditional rezoning application. Residents raised concerns about high energy and water demand, noise and light pollution, and groundwater protection. Prologis stated it is “still early in evaluating what could work best on the site, including a possible technical or data-center use” and could not provide energy/water capacity figures at this stage.
  • Background and project details: The site is serviced by municipal water and would not need to draw on groundwater if the developer uses closed-loop / dry air cooling; township documents say water/sewage capacity would remain sufficient under those systems. The land parcels are part of the township’s industrial vacant land (28–32 Mile along M-53); in 2024 Prologis proposed 230 acres for a Stellantis parts distribution site that was declined. The planning commission may make a recommendation to the Washington Township Board of Trustees, and any land use approval would require an additional public hearing.
• Dec 11, 2025

  Lawmakers introduce bill to cancel $100 million University of Michigan data center grant

  Michigan State Rep. Jimmie Wilson Jr. introduced legislation to rescind a $100 million state grant awarded for the University of Michigan and Los Alamos National Laboratory’s planned data center in Ypsilanti Township.

  • Main action: Legislation introduced by Rep. Jimmie Wilson Jr. seeks to rescind a $100 million state grant (awarded by the Michigan Strategic Fund / Michigan Economic Development Corp.) for the U‑M / Los Alamos data center project; the Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees passed a Dec. 2 resolution calling the grant application a “bait and switch” and urging cancellation.
  • Background and details: The overall project is described as a $1.2 billion initiative with U‑M financing $850 million, initially proposed for a 20‑acre site (grant application) while the university later acquired 124.68 acres on Textile Road; construction is scheduled to begin in 2028 and complete by 2031, the project would include two computing centers and the university says it will support research in medicine, climate science, energy, and national security; a petition signed by over 700 U‑M employees, faculty, and students calls to cancel the project and end the Los Alamos partnership.
• Dec 11, 2025

  Dual Feed: NextEra Energy, TotalEnergies, ENGIE, NIPSCO, ProPetro, Claibrant Energy, DTE Energy, Redwood Materials, KULR, Honeywell

  NextEra Energy is repositioning as a bespoke energy-infrastructure partner for AI-scale data centers, announcing large partnerships (notably with Google Cloud) and plans including a restart of the 615 MW Duane Arnold nuclear plant under a 25-year PPA targeted to return to service by 2029.

  • Main announcement & actions: NextEra is sharpening focus on data-center customers with a backlog ~6 GW earmarked for technology/data centers and an operating+backlog >10.5 GW; it is pursuing a diversified portfolio (renewables, nuclear restart at Duane Arnold 615 MW targeted 2029 under a 25-year PPA, long-duration storage, gas) and announced a landmark partnership with Google Cloud to build multiple gigawatt-scale campuses with dedicated generation and capacity infrastructure.
  • Background & other concrete details: Other 2025 industry moves include TotalEnergies–Google 15-year PPA for 1.5 TWh (Montpelier, Ohio); ENGIE–Meta 600 MW Swenson Ranch Solar (Texas), online 2027; NIPSCO/GenCo plan up to 3 GW dispatchable for Amazon including two 1.3 GW gas units + 400 MW / 1,600 MWh BESS with ~$7 billion estimated capex; PROPWR (ProPetro) 60 MW hybrid BESS + reciprocating engines for a Midwest hyperscaler; Aligned + Calibrant 31 MW / 62 MWh on-site BESS coming online 2026; DTE Energy seeking approval to serve a proposed 1.4 GW AI data center in Michigan (linked to Oracle/OpenAI); vendor announcements include Redwood Energy (battery repurposing), KULR‘s AI Datacenter BESS platform, and Honeywell + LS Electric integrated microgrid solutions.
• Dec 11, 2025

  What we’re reading: Southfield council expected to vote on data center with closed-loop water system

  DTE-backed Michigan Energy First donated $550,000 to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s nonprofit and $750,000 to House Speaker Matt Hall’s connected account in 2024.

  • Main announcement:Michigan Energy First (backed by DTE Energy) made political contributions of $550,000 to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s nonprofit and $750,000 to House Speaker Matt Hall’s connected account in 2024; the disclosures come as the Michigan Public Service Commission (with Whitmer appointees) reviews DTE’s Saline Township data center plans and after approval of a 5% rate increase.
  • Additional details / context: Southfield City Council will vote Dec. 15 on a 12-acre Metrobloks data center proposed at Inkster Road (approx. 100 megawatts, closed-loop water system); HUD withdrew a plan to redirect $3.9 billion in homelessness aid hours before a federal court hearing (HUD cited “technical” issues); Michigan Potash & Salt Co. and Group1 Inc. proposed a mine to extract 800,000 tons of potash annually for potassium-ion batteries for AI data centers.
• Dec 11, 2025

  House Passes Bill to Protect Energy Supply and Lower Energy Costs

  The U.S. House of Representatives has passed H.R. 3638, the Electric Supply Chain Act, led by Rep. Bob Latta, to mandate regular Department of Energy reviews of electricity supply chain risks and vulnerabilities.

  • The bill requires the Department of Energy to regularly review risks and vulnerabilities in supply chains for electricity generation, transmission, and key grid components, with the stated aim of preventing outages and lowering energy costs for American families.
  • Statements from House Republican Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain and Rep. Bob Latta emphasize grid reliability, energy security as national security, expanding domestic energy production, and ensuring the grid can power future artificial intelligence data centers, while urging the Senate to act on the legislation.
• Dec 11, 2025

  House Passes Rep. Evans’ Bill to Lower Energy Costs, Increase Grid Reliability

  The U.S. House of Representatives has passed H.R. 3628, the State Planning for Reliability and Affordability Act, led by Rep. Gabe Evans, to address energy costs and grid reliability.

  • H.R. 3628 aims to help utilities plan for rising electricity demand, maintain sufficient reliable generation to prevent power outages, and protect consumers from sudden energy cost spikes linked to poor planning or rapid retirement of power plants.
  • The bill introduces new federal standards for state regulatory entities such as the Colorado Public Utilities Commission, requiring greater consideration of energy reliability and affordability, and is publicly backed by House Republican Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain and Rep. Evans as part of a broader effort to counter existing regulatory approaches.
• Dec 10, 2025

  York Township residents sound alarm about proliferation of data centers in Washtenaw County

  York Township residents urged the township board to consider a moratorium on data center development.

  • Main announcement/action: Residents and local speakers asked the York Township board to consider a data center moratorium to allow time for review and regulations; Township Supervisor Charles Tellas said representatives for Sansone Group discussed a possible 1 gigawatt data center on 200 acres owned by Toyota at Willis and Platt roads (no application submitted).
  • Background and details:Concerns include potential impacts to the power grid, higher electric costs, and threats to private wells and watershed from cooling water discharge and chemicals; referenced nearby projects include a $1 billion Augusta Township proposal, a $7 billion Oracle/OpenAI Saline Township project, and a $1.2 billion University of Michigan/Los Alamos data center.
    • Meetings and civic action: Planning Commission meeting — Jan. 12 at 7 p.m.; Board of Trustees meeting — Jan. 13 at 7 p.m.; both at 11560 Stony Creek Road, Milan, MI 48160. Email contact: connect@planetdetroit.org.
• Dec 10, 2025

  Top Environmental Victories of 2025

  The Sierra Club announces a roundup of its top environmental victories in 2025.

  • Major announced actions: The article catalogs specific legal, legislative, and advocacy wins including: stopping a proposed public-lands sell-off after Congressional withdrawal; passage of the Climate Change Superfund Act in New York (following Vermont in 2024) and introduced bills in California, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Maine; legal victories blocking Commonwealth LNG (coastal use permit terminated) and two lawsuits creating guardrails on data centers in Kansas and Michigan; NEVI program restart unlocking $2.7 billion for EV charging; and a $744 million jury verdict against Chevron for coastal damages in Louisiana.
  • Background and additional details: The piece lists species and land protections (Northern Rockies wolves, Colorado bison, Rice’s whales), closure of Merrimack Station (final New England coal plant) and repeal of an Ohio coal-bailout that would have cost nearly half a billion dollars, passage of Utah’s balcony solar law allowing small plug-in systems without utility approval, a coalition delivering ~500,000 public comments to defend the Roadless Rule (including 40,000 from Sierra Club advocates), and a world-record origami action sending more than 86,000 paper fish to oppose Enbridge’s Line 5.
• Dec 3, 2025

  Why AI-Driven Power Demand Is No Reason to Panic

  The article argues that data center operators and utilities must combine flexibility measures and transmission upgrades to meet AI-driven power demand.

  • Main action/analysis: Data center operators are implementing flexibility solutions (energy storage, demand response, virtual power plants, behind-the-meter systems, workload scheduling) and technology changes (GPU roadmaps implying 1MW per rack) to reduce grid strain; a Duke University study finds that 0.25% flexibility (≈22 hours/year) could allow the U.S. grid to accommodate 76GW of new data center load. Google has agreements with Indiana Michigan Power and the Tennessee Valley Authority to pause or reduce AI/ML tasks during peak demand as an early example of demand-response for ML workloads.
  • Background and infrastructure details: The core constraint is transmission and interconnection, not generation: Dominion Energy’s transmission backlogs will see relief when new infrastructure comes online in 2026, PG&E warns new substation work may take five years or more, and regional operators (outside Texas) say they cannot meet FERC deadlines for critical upgrades; developers build facilities in 2–3 years versus 4–8 years for interconnection, and Goldman Sachs estimates $720 billion of grid spending may be required through 2030 (driving uptake of expensive behind-the-meter solutions).