North Carolina Data Center News

Mar 4, 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, has posted the latest roundup of data center career opportunities on the Data Center Frontier jobs board.

Main announcement: Data Center Frontier and Pkaza published 13 current data center job listings across the United States (examples include Electrical Applications Engineer, Electrical Commissioning Engineer, Production Architect – Data Center Facilities Design, Director of Construction, and Data Center Facility Operations Director), with many roles offering remote options or multiple city locations (e.g., Pittsburgh, Dallas, New York, Ashburn, Columbus, Boulder, Chesterton, Augusta).
Background and details: Listings are provided by/for mission-critical and colo/hyperscale sectors and emphasize reliability, energy efficiency, sustainable design and LEED expertise; roles cover engineering design & commissioning firms, electrical contracting, general contracting and data center developers, and include positions supporting AI/HPC infrastructure and brownfield conversions.

Mar 4, 2026

Capital Power reports fourth quarter and year-end 2025 results

Capital Power Corporation released its 2025 financial results and published its 2025 Integrated Annual Report, and highlighted strategic actions including a ~C$3.0 billion acquisition in PJM, MOUs for U.S. growth and a 250 MW Alberta data centre ESA.

Main announcement: Capital Power reported full-year 2025 results (AFFO C$1,066 million; net income C$159 million) and published the 2025 Integrated Annual Report; completed acquisition of Hummel and Rolling Hills for approximately C$3.0 billion (US$2.2 billion) and issued C$2.3 billion of senior unsecured notes (including ~C$1.7 billion U.S. private offering). The Company also entered MOUs: (a) with Apollo Funds for an investment partnership with up to US$3.0 billion of potential committed equity (including US$750 million from Capital Power), and (b) with an investment-grade data centre developer for a 250 MW Alberta ESA (10+ years) anticipated to start in 2028.
Background and other details: Capital Power raised C$667 million of equity, completed a C$600 million medium-term note offering (4.231% interest, maturing Jan 14, 2033), redeemed C$300 million January 2026 notes, and reached commercial operation of ~60 MW of contracted projects plus 170 MW battery storage in Ontario. The Arlington Valley tolling agreement was extended to Oct 2038, with an expected full-year adjusted EBITDA uplift of ~US$70 million by 2032 and an uprate contributing ~US$8 million/year starting 2027.

Mar 3, 2026

New Data Center Developments: March 2026

DataCenterKnowledge published a monthly roundup of global data center developments covering design, construction, power, and investment across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Middle East & Africa.

Overview and key highlights: The roundup summarizes region-by-region developments including major deals and investment figures: S&P reported $69 billion+ in total deal value in 2025 with a $40 billion Aligned Data Centers acquisition; Google’s $15 billion America-India Connect initiative; Adani’s $100 billion AI infrastructure pledge targeting 5 GW by 2035; and a €176 billion (≈$208 billion) European investment forecast for 2026–2031. It also details project specifics such as Meta’s $10 billion, 1 GW Indiana campus and Microsoft’s 15 data centers proposal at the former Foxconn site with a taxable construction value over $13 billion.
Additional context and deal/implementation notes: The article lists announced partnerships, approvals, and timelines: Equinix & CPP bought atNorth for $4 billion (with a $4.2 billion financing package); Mistral AI & EcoDataCenter plan a $1.4 billion Sweden AI-focused facility launching in 2027; CyrusOne‘s FRA7 first facility topping out (~$1.2 billion regional investment); G42’s Framework Cooperation Agreement in Southeast Asia backed by consumption commitments up to $1 billion. It also reports regulatory actions (NRC/Atomic Safety and Licensing Board intervention on an SMR proposal) and lists concrete project locations and capacity targets (MW/GW) where given.

Feb 25, 2026

Samsung Said 'AI' a Lot at Unpacked. Except When It Talked About the Environment

Samsung dropped its new Galaxy S26 smartphone series at Unpacked and heavily promoted Galaxy AI features while giving limited attention to AI’s environmental impacts.

Main announcement/action: Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S26 series at Unpacked (Feb. 25, 2026) and emphasized Galaxy AI features (call screening, photo editing) while noting environmental initiatives such as a pledge to include recycled material in all devices by 2030 and global water restoration efforts.
Background and context: The piece is an opinion/commentary highlighting industry-level facts: AI’s large energy and water demands, the push to build data centers across the US, and that companies like Google reported nearly a 50% rise in GHG emissions in 2024; it also cites OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s comment that concerns about AI’s water usage are “fake”.

Feb 25, 2026

Experts Provide Energy Insights in NCCETC’s New Webinar Series

The NC Clean Energy Technology Center (NCCETC) has launched the Energy Insights Webinar Series and hosted the first webinar on January 15, 2026, while also announcing a new Power Decarbonization & IRP Data Sheet.

Main announcement: NCCETC’s Policy & Markets team hosted the inaugural webinar titled “Solar and Wind and Gas, Oh My!” on January 15, 2026, provided a deep dive into utility integrated resource plans (IRPs), and announced the new Power Decarbonization & IRP Data Sheet (biannual). The data sheet includes Generation Ownership, Emission Reduction Targets, Current Utility IRPs, Large Load Tariffs, Clean Energy Targets, IRP Rules, CWIP Policies, and Studies and can be purchased through DSIRE Insight.
Background and details: The webinar reported 51 IRPs decided or pending in 2025, with 428,289 MW considered as capacity additions and 85,560 MW considered as capacity retirements; as of January 26, 2026, 35 states have formal IRP filing requirements. A follow-up webinar, “Continuous Onsite Generation for Data Centers”, is scheduled for March 5, 2026, led by NCCETC’s CPIE team and hosted with the DOE Southeast Onsite Energy TAP, featuring speakers from Spectrum Engineers and Joule Power.

Feb 24, 2026

7x24 Exchange's Dennis Cronin on the Data Center Workforce Crisis: The Talent Cliff Is Already Here

Dennis Cronin (7x24 Exchange founding member and MCGA board member) warns the data center industry is already facing a structural workforce crisis and calls for coordinated industry investment, standardized certification, and scaled community-college pathways.

Main announcement/action: Cronin estimates a roughly one million job gap (467,000–498,000 core operational roles + ~514,000 emerging AI/sustainability/security roles), calls to replace five-year experience requirements with an entry-level certification, and urges a shared funding approach across operators, vendors, contractors, and manufacturers (he cites $60B in data centers announced this year and advocates for $1B to scale training).
Background and details: Cronin critiques internal academies and commercial courses (commercial training often ~$1,000 per day per person), highlights community colleges (Cleveland CC, Northern Virginia CC, Southside CC) as scalable two-year technician pipelines, and outlines a workforce ecosystem of outreach, standardized curriculum, certification labs, apprenticeships, and employer commitments.

Feb 22, 2026

Data centers in Ohio: Economic boost or environmental burden?

House Bill 646 would create a data center study commission to examine data center expansion across Ohio and assess environmental and grid impacts before projects move forward.

Main announcement: House Bill 646 proposes a bipartisan data center study commission that will examine environmental effects, electrical grid impacts, water usage, noise, and local economic impacts prior to project approvals; the bill is currently in committee.
Background & details: Ohio has about 200 data centers (many clustered in Central Ohio); New Albany has seen 14 companies build more than 68 data centers (about 40 operational). Policy Matters Ohio reports at least $140 million in tax exemptions granted for data center construction and estimates up to $1.6 billion in potential state/local revenue foregone tied to incentives for Amazon, Google and Microsoft. The article cites concerns including a proposed Adams County facility that would use >20x the county’s electricity, potential water use of up to 5 million gallons/day, and reliance on diesel backup generators (sound levels up to 90dB). Microsoft has pledged carbon negative by 2030 and a community-first infrastructure commitment; Amazon aims net-zero by 2040 and to power some operations with nuclear by 2050.

Feb 18, 2026

Dispelling Trump’s dystopia: A European blueprint for Gaza’s renewal

Jared Kushner presented a Trump economic development plan for Gaza at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Main announcement/action: Jared Kushner unveiled a 20-point Trump economic development plan for Gaza featuring AI-generated renderings of glass towers and marinas, a proposal to fragment Gaza into seven discontinuous residential areas, 180 tourist beachfront towers, designated zones for data centres, and proposals for heavily surveilled “alternative safe communities”; Europeans and Arab states are due to be asked to consider the plan when the Board of Peace meets in Washington on February 19.
Background and concrete details: The plan would place reconstruction and contracting under the Board of Peace (BoP) chaired by President Trump, alludes to “amazing investment opportunities” for private businesses (including reported interest from figures such as Larry Ellison and Peter Thiel), mentions private security contractors (e.g., UG Solutions, the Alligator Alcatraz team) and includes proposals for biometric monitoring and restricted coastal access; the author calls for alternative donor mechanisms such as a World Bank-managed trust fund and immediate humanitarian priorities (clearing rubble, restoring services, temporary shelter) to be led with Palestinian ownership and oversight.

Feb 13, 2026

The 50 States of Power Decarbonization: States and Utilities Navigate Large Load Customer Demand in 2025

The N.C. Clean Energy Technology Center (NCCETC) released its 2025 Annual Review and Q4 2025 edition of the 50 States of Power Decarbonization report.

Report release & headline findings: The NCCETC released the 2025 annual review and Q4 2025 quarterly report, finding 49 states plus Puerto Rico took a total of 667 actions on electric power decarbonization and resource planning in 2025; 37 states took 104 actions related to large load customers. The report highlights top trends including new large-load tariffs, increased natural gas capacity additions, state-led procurement of energy storage, and consideration of advanced nuclear.
Background & concrete details: The release documents integrated resource plan filings showing planned capacity additions of 144,405 MW solar, 125,016 MW natural gas, 58,581 MW storage, 58,381 MW wind, and 56,475 MW planned coal retirements in 2025; it notes 400 actions tracked in Q4 2025 plus more than 270 introduced bills, and calls out surging data center development driving large-load policy responses.

Feb 5, 2026

What’s up with data centers in Minnesota?

Fresh Energy calls on Minnesota regulators and the Public Utilities Commission to adopt policies ensuring data center development benefits Minnesotans and aligns with the state’s 100% clean electricity by 2040 law.

Main announcement / action: Fresh Energy urges the Commission to implement better load forecasting, rate design (large-load tariffs), and transparency on water and behind-the-meter generation to ensure data centers pay their fair share; Minnesota currently has 13 operating data centers with 43 MW of capacity and 12 planned projects totaling 1,120 MW (as of January 2026). Key regulatory actions already in motion include Xcel Energy’s large-load tariff filed July 2025 and the Commission requiring Dakota Electric to file an additional tariff in December 2025.
Background and details: Fresh Energy cites national context such as data center investment growth from $13.8 billion to $41.2 billion per year and nearly 100 GW of proposed behind-the-meter gas plants nationwide; it recommends using IRP updates, stochastic/scenario-based forecasting, and tariff rate classes so utilities do not overbuild infrastructure or shift costs to residential customers.

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