Oregon Data Center News

Apr 1, 2026

Geothermal’s Rise a Hot Topic Worldwide

Rystad Energy forecasts near-term surge in geothermal investment to 2030.

Main announcement: Rystad Energy projects global investment in geothermal could reach nearly $9 billion by 2030, up from about $1.4 billion in 2020; the article reports multiple new commercial and pilot projects (e.g., Fervo Energy’s 500-MW Cape Station in Utah; the U.S. EIA notes the first large-scale commercial EGS in the U.S. is expected online in June). Include timelines and project scales where given.
Background and supporting details:Corporate deals and government support include Google’s long-term agreement with Ormat to supply up to 150 MW in Nevada (online 2028–2030), XGS Energy’s $1.2-billion, 150-MW project to power Meta in New Mexico (two phases operational by 2030), federal and state grants (e.g., $1.78 million tax credit for Vail on a $6-million library geothermal project; DOE / GEODE $165 million grant programs; an $8.6-million grant approved to expand a U.S. Northeast geothermal district heating network).

Mar 31, 2026

Amazon to Pay $20.5 Million in Settlement of Class Action Suit Over Pollution in Eastern Oregon

Amazon has agreed to a $20.5 million class-action settlement with Eastern Oregon residents over alleged contributions from its data-center operations to groundwater nitrate pollution.

$20.5 million settlement allocated into two primary funds after attorney fees: private well projects (to tap deeper, less contaminated aquifers) and public water-system projects (treatment and distribution); an additional $30,000 block is reserved for $5,000 one-time payments to the six plaintiffs. The settlement requires court approval and will release Amazon from liability related to alleged contamination in the LUBGWMA. Amazon denies the allegations and states it settled to avoid litigation burdens.
Background and other details: Amazon opened its first data center in Morrow County in 2011 and now operates 13 facilities in and around the Lower Umatilla Basin; regulators have documented rising nitrate levels since 1991. Plaintiffs allege data-center cooling-water discharges (tens of millions of gallons annually) accelerate nitrate movement into groundwater. Other defendants named include Lamb Weston, Threemile Canyon Farms, Madison Ranches, Port of Morrow, Portland General Electric, and Columbia River Processing; plaintiffs’ attorney Steve Berman said litigation will continue against those parties.

Mar 28, 2026

Ohio EPA considers new wastewater permits for data center as locals push back

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is considering a new general permit to allow data centers to discharge wastewater into surface waters.

Main action: The Ohio EPA proposes a new general wastewater permit for data centers that would authorize discharges into rivers and streams and speed approvals compared with the current requirement for individual permits, while the agency says it would limit any pollution increases to cases of critical community or economic need.
Background and context: Coverage cites multiple regional “megasite“ proposals including a $4 billion Amazon Data Services project in Wilmington, Ohio and a 2,080-acre, 400-gigawatt Maysville, KY project estimated at $1 billion; the article notes local government actions (e.g., Cincinnati City Council rulemaking, Mount Orab Village Council 180-day moratorium) and a recent Clinton County judge-ordered pause on Wilmington movement to allow more public input.

Mar 27, 2026 · IT Brief Asia

ZincFive named to TIME green tech list for third year

ZincFive has been named to TIME’s America’s Top GreenTech Companies 2026 list, ranking 142, marking its third consecutive year on the list.

Ranking details: ZincFive ranked 142 on TIME’s America’s Top GreenTech Companies 2026 list; the list evaluated more than 3,500 companies using environmental impact, financial strength, and innovation; ZincFive was one of two Oregon-headquartered companies included.
Company and product context: ZincFive, a privately held nickel-zinc battery maker based in Tualatin, Oregon, focuses on immediate power for data centres and in November announced BC 2 AI, an AI-optimised battery system for dual-mode operation designed to manage transient GPU cluster loads while providing outage protection; the company holds an international patent portfolio and has received awards from Edison Awards, CleanTech Breakthrough, and Power Technology Excellence Awards.

Mar 25, 2026

Path cleared for massive data center in Frederick State environmental officials have cleared another hurdle for a new data center campus in Frederick, Maryland.

The Maryland Department of the Environment issued a final determination approving an air quality permit for Amazon Data Services, Inc., allowing installation of emergency backup generators at 3250 Digital Drive in Frederick, MD.

Permit approval & limits: MDE approved installation of 99 diesel-fired emergency generators at the Frederick data center but prohibits use as a primary power source, prohibits selling power back to the grid, and limits generator operation to periodic testing only to ensure they function during outages.
Oversight & compliance requirements: MDE will perform unannounced inspections, review the facility’s operational logs, and Amazon must submit annual emissions reports; before storing diesel on-site Amazon must obtain a separate oil permit and provide a rigorous spill prevention plan.

Mar 24, 2026

The Northwest Hasn’t Learned the Lessons of WPPSS (“Whoops”)

Laura Feinstein (Sightline Institute) argues that leaders should avoid building new gas-fired power plants in the U.S. Pacific Northwest and instead prioritize data center flexibility, demand response, energy efficiency, and transmission expansion to address near-term resource adequacy concerns.

Main action and evidence: The piece urges policymakers and regulators to require utilities and large electricity users to exhaust large-load flexibility and demand-side measures before approving fossil fuel infrastructure; cites a September 2025 E3 Phase 1 analysis that reported an 8.7 GW shortfall by 2030 (commonly rounded to 9 GW), which shrinks to roughly 5.6 GW when already planned resources (e.g., Carriger solar, PacifiCorp conversions) are counted. The article highlights alternatives with concrete figures: a Duke University estimate that 3.8 GW could be gained if data centers reduced power about one week per year, and a Sylvan Energy Analytics review showing data-center curtailment can eliminate the gap in multiple scenarios.
Background and concrete details: The article documents utilities’ recent actions and legislative context: PSE has contracted for six new gas turbines (filing redacted), Grant PUD approved a (temporary) 12 MW natural gas plant, PSE’s voluntary demand response currently reduces <2% of peak demand and Washington law requires ramping to 10% savings starting 2027; it notes the U.S. Department of Energy used the E3 report to justify keeping a coal plant online past Dec 31, 2025. The author characterizes the piece as an opinion/analysis urging precaution and policy alternatives rather than announcing a new transaction or partnership.

Mar 22, 2026

Environment and climate bills that passed and failed in Washington state’s legislative session

The Washington State Legislature passed multiple climate and energy bills, including creation of a state transmission authority and closing a Clean Energy Transformation Act (CETA) loophole for independent generators feeding data centers.

Key actions passed:Senate Bill 6355 will establish a state electrical transmission authority (nine-person board, tribal citizen seat) to plan and finance transmission expansion; Senate Bill 5982 requires port utility districts and independent electricity generators that serve data centers to comply with CETA (zero greenhouse gas electricity by 2045); House Bill 2215 lowers the emissions threshold covered by the Climate Commitment Act from 25,000 metric tons to 500 metric tons.
Additional details and timelines:House Bill 2416 directs the Department of Ecology to allocate no-cost allowances to the Spokane Waste to Energy facility from 2027 to 2030 (the facility otherwise faced $4 million to $8 million in carbon allowance costs); transmission projects may take a decade or longer for permitting and construction; a separate sweeping data center regulation bill (House Bill 2515) failed in the Senate Ways and Means committee and sponsors intend to reintroduce it next year.

Mar 13, 2026

Dell Simplifies Storage for the AI Era

Dell Technologies has outlined its AI-era storage strategy and promoted an AI-ready storage backbone featuring PowerStore, PowerScale, ObjectScale, the Dell Automation Platform and the Dell AI Data Platform, and emphasized integration with the Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA.

Main announcement/action: Dell positions its storage stack as a strategic, board-level decision: it highlights PowerStore for core/private-cloud workloads and PowerScale/ObjectScale plus the Dell AI Data Platform to feed GPUs at line rate; it also presents the Dell Automation Platform to manage compute, networking and storage across multi-hypervisor, multi-workload environments and references integration with the Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA (no monetary values or timelines stated).
Background and details: The article summarizes Arthur Lewis’s theCUBE interview at the New York Stock Exchange and cites customer examples—Oregon State University (petabyte-scale marine research data) and Kennedy Miller Mitchell (AI-assisted film production); it urges CIO actions: make storage the first AI design decision, move beyond HCI-only architectures, and standardize on an AI-ready storage backbone.

Mar 13, 2026

The Gigawatt Bottleneck: Power Constraints Define AI Data Center Growth

Bloom Energy has released the 2026 Data Center Power Report finding electricity availability has become a defining boundary on data center expansion.

Main announcement: The Bloom Energy 2026 Data Center Power Report concludes electricity availability is now a primary constraint for data center growth; it projects U.S. IT load could rise from ~80 GW (2025) to ~150 GW (2028), and highlights major grid forecast revisions such as ERCOT increasing its 2030 data center demand projection from 29 GW to 77 GW and a possible statewide peak of 218 GW by 2031. The report also states roughly one-third of U.S. data centers may rely entirely on onsite power by 2030 and that ~20% of campuses could exceed 1 GW by 2030, rising to nearly 1 in 3 by 2035.
Background and details: The analysis is based on surveys of hyperscalers, colocation providers, utilities, and equipment suppliers through 2025 and documents operational shifts: Texas may exceed 40 GW by 2028 (nearly 30% national share); Georgia market share projected +75% while several legacy markets could lose >50% relative share; utilities and developers show a 1–2 year expectation gap on “time to power”; >70% of developers are evaluating onsite power providers; by 2028, 60% expect higher-voltage busways and 45% expect DC architectures.

Mar 11, 2026

Climate Change Solutions - March 10, 2026

EESI will host a briefing on energy efficiency with the Alliance to Save Energy on March 12 to highlight cost-effective measures for households and small businesses.

Main announcement: EESI and the Alliance to Save Energy will hold a briefing Strategies to Lower Utility Bills Now for Households and Small Businesses on Thursday, March 12, 3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m., in the Rayburn House Office Building, Gold Room (Room 2168) and online (RSVP link available). The event focuses on energy efficiency solutions for households and small businesses and invites expert panelists to discuss readily-available measures.
Background and other details: EESI published a Climate Jobs fact sheet citing >4 million climate jobs in 2024 and a 2.8% growth rate in clean energy jobs; it also promoted the 29th annual Congressional Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency EXPO on June 24 (Rayburn Foyer and Gold Room, 10:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m., online option). The newsletter summarizes recent congressional activity on bills including S.2245 (Digital Coast Act extension), H.R.755 (Critical Mineral Consistency Act of 2025), H.R.390 (ACERO Act), and H.R.2600 (ASCEND Act), and notes hearings that focused on the electric grid and data centers.

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