Tennessee Data Center Intel

Recent Tennessee data center news

• Sep 30, 2026

  POWER Honors Bloom Energy’s KR Sridhar with 2026 Executive Leadership Award

  POWER’s article announces that KR Sridhar, founder, chairman and CEO of Bloom Energy, received POWER’s 2026 Executive Leadership Award for advancing distributed, on-site power for data centers and AI demand.

  • Bloom Energy’s history and commercial milestones are summarized, including its 2001 founding, 2006 first field trial, 2008 commercial launch, 2018 NYSE listing, and later manufacturing expansion in Fremont, California.
  • The piece highlights major customer and financing relationships: Bloom’s arrangement with Equinix surpassed 100 MW in February 2025 across 19 data centers in six states; Oracle expanded its Bloom relationship in April 2026 to as much as 2.8 GW with an initial 1.2-GW deployment; Brookfield Asset Management committed $5 billion in October 2025 and raised that commitment to $25 billion in June 2026.
• Sep 24, 2026

  Louisiana’s next big industrial play could be nuclear

  The U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is weighing a proposed $50 billion federal plan to create three nuclear innovation campuses in the United States.

  • The Department of Energy’s Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus initiative would combine advanced reactors, nuclear fuel recycling, and data centers at three hubs, with candidate host states including Louisiana, Tennessee, Utah, Oklahoma, Idaho, and West Virginia.
  • Supporters say each hub could generate up to $10 billion in long-term local tax revenue and 25,000 jobs; the plan would also involve states agreeing to store nuclear waste and comes amid debate over the stalled Yucca Mountain project and federal responsibility for spent fuel.
• Sep 22, 2026

  South Korea’s Samsung C&T To Help Build Kairos Nuclear Reactor For Google

  Kairos Power has announced that Samsung C&T will help build its 50 MW demonstration reactor for Google, with completion scheduled by 2030.

  • Samsung C&T will make an equity investment in Kairos and provide in-kind engineering services worth up to $100 million (€87 million), including $70 million in equity.
  • Google first signed a deal with Kairos in 2024 to buy power from seven reactors; Kairos is building Hermes 1 and Hermes 2 in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and says Hermes 2 is expected to begin operating in 2030 after NRC approval in late 2024.
• Sep 17, 2026

  Coalitions, states rush to attract talent to skilled trades

  The article reports on growing interest in skilled trades in the U.S. as AI and retirements intensify workforce shortages, while highlighting several education and industry initiatives.

  • A Thumbtack survey of over 2,400 U.S. adults found 82% of Gen Z believe skilled trades offer better long-term job security, and nearly half have started learning or are considering a career change.
  • The U.S. Department of Education launched the Connecting Talent to Opportunity Challenge in January and in June announced $15 million in prize funds and technical assistance for 10 states; Lowe’s Foundation launched a trades coalition with more than 75 organizations aiming to train 1 million people by 2035. Maryland’s Plumbers & Steamfitters UA Local 486 accepted 170 apprentices out of 1,300 applicants and plans a new training center in late 2028.
• Sep 8, 2026

  Data Centers Could Fuel a New ‘Gold Rush’ in Tennessee

  Craig Fuller argued that the Tennessee Valley could become a major hub for artificial intelligence data centers.

  • Fuller, CEO and owner of the Times Free Press, said the region’s access to electricity through the Tennessee Valley Authority gives it an advantage as technology companies invest in data centers and related infrastructure.
  • The piece is a commentary column dated Sept. 3 and referenced by Broadband Breakfast on Sept. 8, 2026; it does not announce a new project, deal, or investment.
• Sep 8, 2026

  Tool incorporates city priorities in picking energy project sites

  The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has announced a new algorithm for selecting urban sites for utility-scale power generation or storage.

  • The tool combines grid infrastructure with zoning, noise regulations, historical and architectural significance, and other community factors to help utilities and project planners choose the type, location, and size of energy projects.
  • ORNL said the algorithm simulates 24-hour energy demand and power flow to model grid capacity and hourly voltage fluctuations; researcher Rodney Itiki said zoning and noise rules can reduce available sites by 20% to 30%.
  • Itiki said the approach could also be applied to critical materials mining, AI data centers, disaster response, and major events such as the FIFA World Cup or Olympics. The project was funded by DOE’s Integrated Energy Systems Office.
• Sep 1, 2026

  Mississippi Wealth          

  This article is an analysis and commentary piece about Mississippi’s wealth geography and investment patterns; it does not announce a new first-time corporate deal, but references ongoing regional investment trends.

  • Central Mississippi is said to be drawing billions into data centers and energy, while North Mississippi is building on advanced manufacturing, technology and logistics, and the Gulf Coast is growing in shipbuilding, defense, aerospace and maritime technology.
  • The piece highlights that Mississippi’s reported millionaire density may understate wealth held in farmland, timberland, mineral and royalty interests, and privately held family businesses; it also cites Oxford/Lafayette County as a growing magnet for affluent families and notes Tunica County now has five operating casinos after recent closures.
• Sep 1, 2026

  From side reaction to center stage: Bleach, salt water boost power in grid batteries

  The Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has announced progress on a new seawater battery formulation for grid energy storage, developed with industry partner Coulomb Technology.

  • ORNL researchers found that adding 5% more bleach shifts the battery toward a chlorine-bleach reaction, more than doubling peak power and making voltage comparable with lithium-ion batteries.
  • The work was carried out with Coulomb Technology, which said the battery could serve longer-duration utility or large data center applications; the project was funded by DOE’s Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technology Office through its Technology Commercialization Fund.
• Sep 1, 2026

  Coal Got an Order. Nuclear Got a Meeting

  Henri Francois argues that U.S. energy planning is being distorted by exaggerated data center load forecasts, while coal plants are being kept online through emergency orders and nuclear projects face long approval delays.

  • The commentary says the Department of Energy has issued more than 40 Section 202(c) emergency orders since May 2025, helping keep at least 4.4 GW of coal-fired generation from retirement; it also cites ERCOT’s 438 GW large-load queue, nearly 90% from data centers.
  • It highlights Centralia in Washington state as a 730 MW coal plant on its third consecutive 90-day order, and says TransAlta has asked FERC for $19.9 million to cover the first order; the piece also notes TVA’s 300 MW Clinch River SMR application and the NRC review timeline.
• Aug 29, 2026

  United States and Cameroon Announce $7 Billion in Investment and Trade Opportunities at Inaugural Economic and Commercial Dialogue

  The United States and Cameroon have announced approximately $7 billion in new and expanding investment and trade opportunities during the inaugural U.S.-Cameroon Bilateral Economic and Commercial Dialogue.

  • The announcement covers sectors including technology, critical minerals, infrastructure, energy, forestry, and logistics, and the two sides agreed to establish joint working groups and continue the Dialogue ahead of the next meeting in 2027, which the United States will host.
  • Specific projects mentioned include Tronox/Lion Rock‘s $500 million rutile project, ARM‘s planned $85 million cobalt-nickel-manganese project in Nkamouna, Hydromine‘s proposed $3.5 billion, 1,040-MW Grand Eweng Hydropower Project, and Cybastion‘s $75 million AI-powered data center and power plant in Douala.