Pennsylvania Data Center Intel

Recent Pennsylvania data center news

• Dec 22, 2025

  Why Are Wind, Solar and Nuclear Advocates So Optimistic in 2026?

  The Associated Press reports that 2025 was a turbulent year for U.S. clean energy as the Trump administration rolled back subsidies, halted offshore wind permitting, canceled grants for projects, and Republicans passed a tax bill that curtailed clean energy tax breaks.

  • Policy actions and market effects:Trump administration actions included pausing offshore wind permitting, canceling federal grants for hundreds of projects, and the Republican tax bill that curtailed clean energy tax breaks; the Energy Department approved a $1 billion loan to help finance the restart of Three Mile Island; solar and battery storage accounted for 85% of new power added to the grid in the first nine months of the administration (Wood Mackenzie).
  • Industry responses and near-term outlook: Executives from Aspen Power, Plug Power, Sol Systems, TWAICE, Anza Renewables, and others described 2025 as turbulent but resilient; companies rushed to start construction before incentives expired, supply chains and tax incentives were weakened, and experts expect solar and battery storage to continue growing in 2026 to meet rising electricity demand from data centers and other loads.
• Dec 22, 2025

  Top 5 Data Center Industry Trends and Predictions for 2026

  Melissa Reali (Data Center Frontier) assesses top data center, AI and digital infrastructure trends for 2025 and issues predictions for what will determine winners in 2026.

  • Main assessment: The piece argues that data centers must secure power independence, policy alignment, connectivity, supply certainty, and sophisticated capital stacks to deliver AI-scale capacity. It highlights concrete metrics and commitments including ~30% of sites using onsite power by 2030 (Bloom Energy citation), >650 billion dollars in announced AI/data center capex across ~150 projects, and ~170 billion dollars of PE-owned assets in development or repositioning. It also notes state-level incentives (e.g., Texas committing over a billion dollars in data center subsidies in a single year) and that 15 U.S. states tie incentives to job or environmental metrics.
  • Background and details: The article documents measurable supply-chain and grid constraints—multi-year transformer and switchgear lead times, lengthening interconnection queues, and modular on-site generation deployments (gas turbines, fuel cells, batteries) as transitional solutions. It describes policy shifts: federal directives to streamline permitting and extend financial tools, encouragement to reuse federal lands/brownfields, and the rise of sovereign AI zones in countries including the UK, India, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia.
• Dec 19, 2025

  Episode for December 19, 2025

  The Allegheny Front published an episode “Bears!” highlighting regional environmental, wildlife, and infrastructure developments on Dec 19, 2025.

  • Main episode coverage: The program reports that Springdale borough council granted a conditional use permit for a massive data center to be built on the site of a former coal-fired power plant in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania; Pennsylvania has joined a lawsuit seeking release of federal EV charger funds held by the White House; the US EPA held a public hearing in Pittsburgh on a proposed Clean Water Act rule change that would remove federal protections for about 80 percent of wetlands; the episode notes Three Mile Island as central to the Trump administration’s push linking nuclear projects to AI power needs.
  • Background and supporting details: The episode features a story on Sherrie Flick and her short story collection “I Have Not Considered Consequences” (bears as recurring characters), a report with Pennsylvania’s bear biologist tracking roughly 16,000 black bears, and is distributed via Libsyn, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and TuneIn on Dec 19, 2025.
• Dec 18, 2025

  Feds Allow Big Tech to Plug Data Centers Right Into Power Plants

  The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a unanimous order allowing large tech data centers to effectively colocate and draw power directly from power plants within the PJM mid-Atlantic territory.

  • Main action: FERC’s order requires PJM Interconnection to develop rates and conditions for multiple colocation scenarios (including with new power plants and existing plants) and may allow big users to pay only for transmission services they use; it stems from a dispute over a proposed colocation between Amazon’s cloud-computing subsidiary and the owner of the Susquehanna nuclear power plant. Key names: Laura Swett (FERC chair), Chris Wright (Trump’s energy secretary). The mid-Atlantic territory covers about 65 million people.
  • Background and details: The order is pitched as protecting ratepayers while enabling rapid connections for data centers; it was welcomed by power plant owners and supported in part by Advanced Energy United, while Edison Electric Institute said it would “continue to work” on rapid connections. The decision grew from disputes between power plant owners and electric utilities, and FERC may require colocating users to pay to replace diverted energy to the broader grid.
• Dec 18, 2025

  AI Is Draining the Grid—and the Power Solution Is Sitting Idle Right Next Door

  Daniel Domingues (founder and CEO of Planno) calls for deploying commercial and industrial rooftop solar and battery storage near data centers to meet AI-driven electricity demand while avoiding long transmission build timelines.

  • Main announcement/action: Advocate to prioritize C&I rooftop solar + storage adjacent to data center clusters to supply local load quickly; cites IEA projection of data center electricity reaching ~1,000 TWh by 2030, U.S. interconnection queues holding >2,000 GW, and transmission projects taking ~10 years (with permitting >50% of that timeline). Notes New Jersey Planno data: 13.5 GW total C&I rooftop potential, 7% adoption, leaving ~10.7 GW untapped; systems <2 MW can use streamlined permitting/interconnection and be built in months.
  • Background and details: Draws on NREL national assessment and a Deloitte study (82% and 92% statistics on innovation/investment focus), highlights benefits of proximity, speed, and private financing (PPAs/leases) for C&I solar; recommends pairing with batteries/microgrids to meet peaks and provide localized resilience.
• Dec 18, 2025

  Environmentalists and Affordability Duke It Out in New York

  New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has shifted to an affordability-focused energy agenda, approving the NESE natural gas pipeline, reversing opposition to new nuclear, streamlining permitting, and establishing a $500 million Empire AI Consortium to support power-hungry AI capacity in the state.

  • Main actions and timeline: Hochul approved the NESE natural gas pipeline (reported Nov 2025) and directed the New York Power Authority to pursue a new zero-emission advanced nuclear plant; her administration has streamlined permitting for electric power and transmission infrastructure and announced the Empire AI Consortium — a $500 million public-private partnership to advance AI/data-center capacity in New York. The NESE approval was explicitly framed by Hochul as a return to an “all-of-the-above” policy and is cited by supporters (Breakthrough Institute letter) as likely to lower regional costs and carbon by displacing heating oil.
  • Background and related developments: The House passed the SPEED Act (sponsored by Rep. Bruce Westerman) to limit NEPA reviews and expedite permitting; Diablo Canyon received a state permit to continue operating for another 20 years but still needs a final NRC license extension and state legislative approval to operate after 2030. Environmental groups (e.g., League of Conservation Voters, Food & Water Watch) criticized Hochul’s moves in reports and public statements (December 2025 LCV report; quotes from Bill McKibben and Alex Beauchamp).
• Dec 18, 2025

  Beyond Coal 2025: Fighting for an Affordable, Renewable, Zero-Emission Future

  The Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign published a 2025 year-end summary of actions and wins while outlining ongoing legal and advocacy fights against federal rollbacks and fossil fuel bailouts.

  • Campaign summary & key metrics: Sierra Club highlights 60,000 premature deaths prevented, claims 100,00 heart attacks and one million asthma attacks avoided (June milestone); warns of projected 50 gigawatts of data center-driven electricity demand by 2030 (nearly a 10% U.S. grid increase over four years); reports active presence in 30+ states and support for nearly 9 GW of onshore wind, solar, and storage projects across 20 states in 2025 with a plan to double engagement in 2026.
  • Legal and policy actions / implementation details: The campaign is challenging EPA rollbacks and litigating coal bailouts; it filed at the D.C. Circuit Court to contest the J.H. Campbell extension and filed at DOE over the Eddystone extension; it joined amici in litigation against the Trump offshore wind moratorium, supported actions around the 800 MW Empire Wind (noting it would provide electricity to 500,000 homes) and cited a federal ruling vacating the wind permitting ban and resumed construction by Equinor; Merrimack coal station retired in September 2025 (final New England coal retirement).
• Dec 18, 2025

  Climate Change Solutions - December 16, 2025

  The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) issues a Climate Change Solutions newsletter summarizing recent climate, energy, and environmental policy developments, briefings, and media coverage in the United States.

  • Newsletter content highlights articles on FEMA reform (FEMA Act, H.R.4669), ghost fishing gear in Hawaiʻi, and global green building standards (LEED, BREEAM), plus an EESI briefing on how the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21) changed 12 clean energy and efficiency tax incentives and how companies and consumers are adjusting.
  • Capitol Hill updates cover House passage or advancement of the Electric Supply Chain Act (H.R.3638), ePermit Act (H.R.4503), ESTUARIES Act (H.R.3962 / S.2063), and multiple PFAS bills (H.R.6668 / S.3457, H.R.6626 / S.3460, H.R.6667, S.3445, S.3446), as well as links to EESI legislative trackers, grid and industrial decarbonization briefings, and external media citations of EESI work on data centers, water use, and EERE investments.
• Dec 18, 2025

  Prices in biggest US power grid auction hit new record, signaling higher utility bills ahead

  PJM Interconnection reported record-high capacity prices driven by data center electricity demand that outstripped new supply.

  • Main announcement: PJM reported capacity prices reached $333.44 a megawatt-day in the latest auction and capacity prices have risen by about 1,000% over roughly two years, reflecting that data centers’ demand overtook available supply; available cleared supply was 134,479 megawatts, about 6,600 MW short of PJM’s reliability requirement.
  • Background and details: PJM is holding catch-up auctions to return to a three-year-ahead schedule with the prices released taking effect for the year beginning June 2027; Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission requesting the price limit be extended, and independent power producer Talen Energy expects more than $1 billion in capacity revenues for the 2027-2028 planning year.
• Dec 18, 2025

  MD lawmakers override climate, environmental bill vetoes

  The Maryland General Assembly has overridden Gov. Wes Moore’s vetoes to pass three climate and environmental bills during a special session.

  • Main action (override on Dec. 16, special session): Lawmakers passed legislation requiring a study of the cost to Maryland of greenhouse gas emissions (HB0128), a study of the economic, energy and environmental impacts of data center development (HB0270), and creation of an office to plan to meet the state’s energy needs (HB1037).
  • Background and implementation details: Gov. Moore had cited the state budget crunch when vetoing the bills and had characterized legislatively mandated studies as “a drag on state government.” A few days before the session he agreed to fund the climate-costs study but provided only half of the $500,000 the bill called for (the bill requested $500,000, implying ~$250,000 provided); advocates lobbied the legislature to override the vetoes. Kim Coble (Maryland League of Conservation Voters) publicly supported moving forward on revenue sources for climate impacts and energy planning.