Pennsylvania Data Center News

Apr 20, 2026

U.S. Data Center Gold Rush Drives Surge in New Utility Tariffs

SEPA and the NC Clean Energy Technology Center (NCCETC) updated the Database of Emerging Large-Load Tariffs (DELTa) on March 31, 2026.

Update details: DELTa now summarizes and analyzes 77 approved and proposed tariffs and service rules across 60 utilities (including 51 approved and 26 proposed). Key dataset metrics include 36 states with tracked tariffs, 56% of tariffs specifying thresholds > 20 MW, and 14% specifying minimum loads of 100 MW.
Policy and regulatory actions: The note documents recent state actions and proposals: Pennsylvania PUC proposed a model tariff (minimum demand 50 MW or 100 MW in aggregate; 5-year minimum contract term; 3–5 year ramp; 80% minimum billing demand; up to 20% post-term load reduction; financial security and hardship fund contributions); New York PSC opened an Energize NY proceeding (stakeholder comments due May 13, 2026); North Carolina Task Force interim report (Feb 2026) recommends large-load tariff options and alternative capacity procurement; other actions include Utah S.B. 132 (March 2025, 100 MW threshold), Texas S.B. 6 (June 2025), California S.B. 57 (Oct 2025, CPUC findings due Jan 1, 2027), and Missouri executive order (Jan 2026). FERC’s ANOPR action on large-load interconnection reforms is expected by June 2026.

Apr 17, 2026

AI Infrastructure Brief: Power, Capital, and the Feeling That Something Is Tightening

Matt Vincent (Data Center Frontier) summarized the week’s announcements showing an accelerating AI data-center buildout paired with mounting power and coordination constraints.

Main observation: The industry is prioritizing power and speed: major deals and project announcements include Bloom Energy and Oracle planning up to 2.8 GW of deployment, Aligned Data Centers breaking ground on a 540 MW Project Caprock, an EdgeConneX affiliate proposing a 430 MW natural gas plant in New Albany, Ohio, proposals for 2 GW in New Mexico and 1.2 GW in Irwin County, Georgia, and Microsoft expanding datacenter operations in Cheyenne. The Maine legislature passed a temporary, exemption-inclusive ban on data centers, signaling emerging social-license constraints.
Capital and implementation details: Financial moves include Switch raising $768 million via ABS, Fluidstack reported in talks for a $1 billion round at an $18 billion valuation, and Jane Street signing a $6 billion AI cloud agreement with CoreWeave; CoreWeave also expanded a multi-year relationship with Anthropic. Utilities are signing long-term power agreements (e.g., NiSource with Alphabet and expanded ties with Amazon). AWS has launched “Project Houdini” to accelerate construction timelines. All items are factual recaps of announcements and reports from the week (no speculative outcomes included).

Apr 17, 2026

Episode for April 17, 2026

The Pennsylvania state House has approved two bills to regulate data center development.

Pennsylvania state House approved two measures to regulate data center development; Harrisburg lawmakers advanced the votes as part of efforts to manage a fast‑growing industry. The article reports two measures were passed by the state House (no timeline for enactment provided in the episode summary).
Background: an energy company (NextEra) is seeking eminent domain to build a high‑voltage power line through southwestern Pennsylvania to feed data centers in Virginia (residents fear losing homes if the PUC grants eminent domain). Other coverage includes the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map update (released last fall) and the designation of Laurel Caverns as Pennsylvania’s 125th state park (an underground park).

Apr 16, 2026

Rural Co-ops Navigate a New Era of Load Growth, Rising Costs, and Policy Pressure

The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) CEO Jim Matheson outlined NRECA’s 2026 policy priorities and warned that rural co-ops are under acute strain from surging loads (notably AI data centers), rising costs, and premature power plant retirements.

Main announcement/action: NRECA is prioritizing rolling back onerous EPA regulations, permitting reform, raising the USDA Rural Utilities Service (RUS) lending cap, and FEMA reform as its top 2026 advocacy goals; Matheson described roughly 900 co-ops in 48 states serving 42 million people across 54% of U.S. land mass, and noted that two cooperatives (Michigan and Indiana) have signed power purchase agreements for the full output of a previously shuttered Michigan nuclear plant that is being restarted by a third-party operator.
Background and other details: Matheson stressed the operational challenge of AI data center “step function” loads, said current battery tech provides roughly ~4 hours of storage versus a desired ~100 hours for long-duration storage, flagged broad supply-chain and equipment cost increases, noted co-ops serve 92% of persistent poverty counties, and mentioned roughly 200 co-ops have moved into rural broadband deployment.

Apr 15, 2026

Energy company wants eminent domain for power lines in SW Pa. for data centers in Virginia

NextEra Energy Transmission MidAtlantic Inc. is seeking a certificate of public convenience from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission to build the 107-mile MidAtlantic Resiliency Link and to obtain eminent domain rights in Pennsylvania.

Project details & authority: NextEra plans a 107-mile transmission line (reported as a 500-volt line in the article) from Dunkard Township, Greene County, PA to an endpoint in Northern Virginia; the project was awarded by PJM to meet data center demand and retirements, and NextEra is requesting a PUC certificate that would grant eminent domain authority.
Local impacts, economics & schedule: NextEra estimates $33 million in Pennsylvania economic output during construction and 150 construction and related jobs, while its filings state no full-time jobs will remain in-state after completion; opposition noted by the Center for Coalfield Justice cites residents’ fears of losing homes.
- Prehearing conference: May 6, 10:00 am, before Administrative Law Judge John M. Coogan (Pennsylvania PUC proceeding).

Apr 15, 2026

Pa. state House passes 2 measures on data center regulation

The Pennsylvania state House has approved two bills related to hyperscale data center construction and operations.

Main action: The House passed a bill to produce a state-drafted model ordinance municipalities may adopt as a template for cloud/AI campus zoning and a separate bill requiring annual reporting of water and electricity use, including estimates of future use; failure to report carries a $10,000-per-day penalty. The measures passed the Democratic-controlled House and now go to the Senate committee on Environmental Resources and Energy.
Background & additional details: Sponsors include Rep. Kyle Mullins (sponsor of both bills); votes were unanimous among Democrats with some GOP support (32 Republicans joined Democrats on the reporting bill; 23 Republicans joined on the model ordinance). Industry groups such as the Data Center Coalition oppose the reporting requirement; other related bills in Harrisburg include protections against utility price hikes, a fast-track permitting bill (SB991), and a proposal to repeal the sales tax exemption for data center equipment (HB2198).

Apr 14, 2026

AI Data Center Moratorium: Balancing Energy, Community, and Growth Risks

Senator Bernie Sanders and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have proposed a federal moratorium on new AI data centers until national safeguards covering environmental, energy, labor and civil liberties are established.

Main action: The sponsors introduced the Artificial Intelligence Data Center Moratorium Act calling for federal pause on new AI data center builds until protections on environmental impact, energy consumption, labor, and civil liberties are implemented; the bill text is published by Sanders’ office and framed as a national safeguard mechanism.
Context and details: Local and state actions include a recently approved temporary ban in Maine and at least 36 US data center projects delayed or blocked between May 2024 and June 2025 (disrupting an estimated $162 billion in investment per Data Center Watch); industry responses include Microsoft’s Community-First AI Plan, vendor reports (Bloom Energy: a third of hyperscalers/colocation providers plan fully self-powered campuses by 2030), and vendor/CEO commentary (GridCare, Pado AI) on grid utilization, behind-the-meter power, and SMRs.

Apr 14, 2026

Data centers are moving inland, away from some traditional locations

Synergy Research Group and Sightline Climate reported a geographic shift and widescale delays in U.S. data center construction.

Main announcement:Synergy Research Group finds the planning and build “center of gravity” for data centers is moving inland to Texas and Midwestern states (Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri). Sightline Climate reports 16 GW of data centers slated to open in the U.S. this year but only 5 GW are under construction now and expects 30–50% of projects to be delayed; 25 GW are announced for 2027 with only 6 GW under construction.
Background and details: Delays are driven by component shortages (memory, storage, batteries, electrical transformers, circuit breakers) and local opposition (e.g., the Seminole Nation banning data centers on tribal lands). Major cloud and AI firms named as project sponsors include Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, and CoreWeave. The article also references Pennsylvania’s $70 billion push for data centers and notes many 2028–2032 projects have not broken ground.

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 8, 2026

Pa. data centers: How lawmakers are responding, from electricity and water use to tax breaks

Pennsylvania lawmakers are proposing and debating multiple bills to regulate data center development, including requirements on payments for grid upgrades, reporting of energy and water use, and conditions on tax incentives.

Main action: The Pennsylvania House passed a bill (sponsored by Rep. Robert Matzie) requiring the state Public Utility Commission to develop rules forcing data centers to pay for grid upgrades, post deposits to cover stranded costs, provide at least 10% of their electricity from new clean power starting in 2027 (or pay into a clean energy/efficiency fund), and agree to curtail power use during emergencies; the measure must still pass the Republican-controlled Senate.
Background and other measures: Other proposed bills include HB2246 (reporting for data centers using >100,000 gallons/day of water), HB2150 (annual energy and water reporting), HB2198 (would repeal a 2022 sales-tax exemption for data center equipment), HB2153 (directs increased tax revenue from new data centers to homeowner/farm tax relief), and Senate proposals SB991 / SB939 to fast-track permitting (preapproved sites and 120-day permit timeline for large centers bringing their own power); the Data Center Coalition (representing AWS, Google, Microsoft, Anthropic, CoreWeave, OpenAI) opposes data-center-specific mandates and spent $19,632 lobbying in Pennsylvania in late 2025.

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