Ohio Data Center Intel

Recent Ohio data center news

• Apr 15, 2026

  Data Center Boom Meets Resistance in Maine: Lawmakers Pass a Yearlong Freeze

  The Maine Legislature approved sending a bill to Gov. Janet Mills that would impose a statewide moratorium on large data centers and create a special council to help towns vet potential projects.

  • Main action:Maine Legislature sent a bill to Gov. Janet Mills to institute a moratorium of more than a year on data centers above a certain size and to create a special council to assist municipalities in vetting projects; the bill was sponsored by Democratic Rep. Melanie Sachs and the governor had not responded publicly to whether she will sign it.
  • Background and details: The move follows intense community backlash and is part of broader activity in at least a dozen states where similar proposals have been introduced; related developments include an Ohio ballot effort that must gather more than 400,000 signatures by July 1 to attempt a statewide ban, failed or stalled bills in states such as Georgia and South Dakota, and commentary from stakeholders including the Data Center Coalition, Maine Broadband Coalition, GrowSmart Maine, and the Maine Policy Institute.
• Apr 14, 2026

  Residents plead with DNR to deny Port Washington data center air pollution permit

  The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources held a public hearing on Vantage’s air quality permit request for its proposed Port Washington hyperscale data center.

  • DNR public hearing and permit details: The DNR held a public hearing on a request from Vantage for an air quality permit to operate 45 diesel backup generators at a proposed hyperscale AI data center in Port Washington; the department had already granted preliminary approval but members of the public urged the DNR to deny the permit or prepare a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) citing the region’s high air pollution classification.
  • Background, technical details and process concerns: Advocates including Midwest Environmental Advocates and Clean Wisconsin cited a technical comparison that 45 generators operating for one hour would emit NOx equivalent to more than 5 million cars driving one mile on I-43 (or seven times Ozaukee County’s hourly NOx); speakers also raised concerns about local NDAs, the PSC’s role, failed legislative attempts to regulate data centers, and calls from environmental groups for a moratorium until a comprehensive state plan (including Gov. Tony Evers’ goal of 100% clean energy by 2050) is developed.
• Apr 13, 2026

  Ohio EPA Holds Hearing on Draft Air Pollution Permit for Gas Power Plant for Meta Data Center

  The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) held a public comment meeting on the draft Title V air permit for the 350 MW “Apollo” “behind-the-meter” gas power plant being built to serve the Meta hyperscale data center in Wood County, Ohio.

  • Main action: OEPA held a public hearing in Bowling Green (approx. 100 attendees) on the draft air permit for the 350 MW Apollo gas plant; the draft estimates the plant could emit 2.5 million tons per year CO2 equivalent. Public comments on the draft are being accepted through April 15, 2026 (submit via ohioepa.commentinput.com or write to Clint Reed, Ohio EPA DAPC, 347 N. Dunbridge Rd., Bowling Green, OH 43402 referencing Will-Power - Apollo).
  • Background/details: The facility is being developed by the Williams Company subsidiary Will-Power LLC and was included in an application to the Ohio Power Siting Board in November 2025; construction is already underway, the gas plant is permitted separately from the adjacent Meta data center, and additional permits (including two large pipelines to feed Apollo) remain unspecified to local residents.
• Apr 10, 2026

  Episode for April 10, 2026

  The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection held a public hearing to gather comments about a new permit for Shell’s ethane cracker / plastic production facility in Beaver County.

  • DEP public hearing: The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection held a public hearing in Beaver County to collect comments on a new permit for Shell‘s ethane cracker / plastic production facility; the hearing drew both support and opposition and is covered in the Allegheny Front episode (April 10, 2026).
  • Background and additional coverage: A report by PennEnvironment gives Pennsylvania an F for rooftop solar permitting; Pennsylvania state lawmakers have introduced multiple bills to address data center growth (covering electricity and water use and potential tax breaks); the episode also highlights the American woodcock mating display and an Ohio legislator‘s proposal to reintroduce elk.
• Apr 10, 2026

  COL8 Data Center Spec Sheet

  COL5 has announced its newest AI-ready data center in Columbus offering ultra-low latency, high-density colocation with direct network and cloud connectivity.

  • Main announcement: COL5’s Columbus facility offers ultra-low latency, high-density colocation, and direct connectivity to 50+ networks, Ohio IX, and top cloud providers; readers are invited to download the spec sheet for full specifications.
  • Facility details: Marketed as AI-ready and sustainable, high-performance infrastructure to support critical IT deployments; the announcement is promotional and provides no pricing or timeline details.
• Apr 10, 2026

  COL7 Data Center Spec Sheet

  COL5 has announced availability of COL5, Columbus’ newest AI-ready data center offering ultra-low latency, high-density colocation.

  • Main announcement: COL5 is promoting its COL5 Columbus facility as an AI-ready data center offering ultra-low latency and high-density colocation, with direct connectivity to 50+ networks, Ohio IX, and top cloud providers.
  • Background/details: The message invites stakeholders to download the spec sheet to explore the facility’s sustainable, high-performance infrastructure for powering critical IT deployments; no pricing or timeline details are provided.
• Apr 9, 2026

  From Reactor Designs to Real Projects: SMRs Enter the Execution Era as AI Power Demand Accelerates

  Data Center Frontier reports that the SMR story in early 2026 has moved from reactor design discussion to concrete industrial execution focused on permits, fuel, supply chains, financing, and customer traction.

  • Main announcement / action: Through Q1 2026 (notably March), multiple vendors advanced from partnership announcements to tangible progress: TerraPower secured an NRC construction permit for Natrium; Holtec had its LWA docketed for two SMR-300 units at Palisades and is pursuing preliminary construction and a partnership with Hyundai Engineering & Construction (aiming at up to 10 GW in North America); X-energy confidentially filed for an IPO (Reuters, March 20) and signed MOUs with Talen Energy (evaluating multiple four-unit Xe-100 deployments) and IHI to strengthen U.S.-Japan supply chains.
  • Background and other details: Vendors are addressing three execution constraints: regulatory progress, manufacturing and fuel ecosystems (e.g., NuScale expanded its Framatome fuel partnership and planned U.S. production at Richland; Oklo and Centrus plan HALEU-related joint activities at Piketon, Ohio; Kairos secured a HALEU contract with DOE), and customer alignment (growing emphasis on industrial users, utilities, and data-center-driven load). Additional milestones: GE Hitachi advanced BWRX-300 deployment work (Step 2 UK GDA, MoUs in Southeast Asia and Poland) and Rolls-Royce SMR received a UK Justification Decision and partnered on supply-chain and control-systems work.
• Apr 7, 2026 · Information Technology and Innovation Foundation

  Four Reasons New AI Data Centers Won’t Overwhelm the Electricity Grid

  Robin Gaster argues that the AI Data Center Moratorium Act introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is unnecessary and misunderstands the drivers of electricity prices.

  • Main point: The author contends the moratorium is unnecessary because electricity price increases are driven largely by fuel costs (especially natural gas), capacity/backup costs, and utility capex, and there are four practical pathways (slower buildout, demand management, bring-your-own-power/BYOP, and utility contract structures) to add data center load without raising rates. The piece explicitly rejects emergency federal action and frames the Sanders–Ocasio-Cortez bill as an inappropriate response.
  • Background and specifics:>240 GW of data center announcements (mostly planned to 2030) is cited but only ~1/3 being built; OpenAI plans $600 billion in data center investment by 2030 vs ~$20 billion in revenues; PJM capacity prices rose from ~$60/kWh (2024) to > $300/kWh (2025); typical permit timelines 6–18 months, design/construction 20–54 months, queue times in PJM up to 8 years; contractual protections noted include 15-year minimum contracts, ~85% minimum load guarantees, exit fees, and “hold harmless” guarantees used by some hyperscalers.
• Apr 4, 2026

  Benji Backer: Nature is Nonpartisan

  Benji Backer has launched Nature is Nonpartisan to create a culturally relevant, nonpartisan conservation movement and to reframe how environmental issues are discussed.

  • Main action: Nature is Nonpartisan has produced media projects (a six-episode YouTube series already filmed) and is launching campaigns including “Going Public” (a public-lands ownership/certificate campaign running until May 30) to mobilize Americans around public lands and conservation. The organization also helped craft an executive order establishing the “Make America Beautiful Again” Conservation Commission and continues policy engagement while positioning the movement as nonpartisan.
  • Background and complementary action: Benji Backer previously founded the American Conservation Coalition (ACC, ~100,000 conservative members referenced) and now aims to broaden outreach beyond a single political constituency. Meanwhile, Energy Right (founder Skyler Zunk, team of five) is doing local clean-energy education in rural Virginia — promoting community solar, agrovoltaics (sheep grazing under panels), and addressing local concerns around land use and permitting, including the need to power growing energy demand from data centers in Northern Virginia.
• Apr 3, 2026

  Episode for April 3, 2026

  The Allegheny Front released a podcast episode on April 3, 2026 covering air pollution and lung cancer alongside related environmental stories.

  • The episode focuses on a February report finding energy generated in Pennsylvania will power data centers both in-state and out-of-state, a new study attempting to separate smoking from lung cancer risk (with surprising results in areas with poor air quality), and includes an interview with the author of a birding guide.
    • Date: April 3, 2026
    • Duration: 29:49
    • Format/location: Podcast episode available online (audio mp3 and streaming platforms)
    • Agenda/subject: air pollution & lung cancer study; data center energy demand impacts on Pennsylvania; steel industry climate ranking; earlier allergy season; wildlife/fish kill report; birding guide interview
  • The episode also reports that Nippon Steel (U.S. Steel’s new owner) scored near the bottom in a climate ranking due to increased coal usage and a recent reinvestment in coal at a U.S. Steel plant in Indiana; other segments note a fish kill in Centre County (Pine Creek) documenting dead fish, crayfish, and frogs, and that allergy season is starting earlier due to changing temperature and precipitation patterns.