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Tennessee Data Center Intel
Latest data center news, projects, power and policy across Tennessee — updated daily.
Recent Tennessee data center news
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National laboratory research collaboration focuses on accelerated qualification of critical nuclear components
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge and Idaho national laboratories have announced a collaboration to expand the domestic supply chain for industrial pressure vessels using wire arc additive manufacturing.
- The labs will help industry develop wire arc 3D printing for pressure vessels by leveraging expertise in additive manufacturing, real-time accuracy monitoring, parts qualification, and nuclear material properties.
- ORNL said the effort builds on a July demonstration of a small pressure vessel on the MedUSA platform, and the collaboration was announced on Aug. 19 at Materials and Manufacturing Innovation Days (M2IND) at ORNL’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF).
The announcement is a lab collaboration and event report, not a commercial deal, and it also links the work to broader applications in nuclear energy, chemical refining, oil and gas, defense, aerospace, and AI data centers.
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LG Energy Solution begins LFP and NMC BESS and EV cell production at Michigan factory
LG Energy Solution has announced the start of production at its battery cell factory in Lansing, Michigan, while DeltaX has announced plans to establish its North American headquarters in Walton County, Georgia.
- LG Energy Solution Michigan-Lansing has begun production of LFP and NMC battery cells, with a target of more than 35GWh annual capacity at full scale; the plant will supply BESS and EV applications, and Toyota cells will support the 2027 Toyota Highlander EV.
- LG ES said it has invested over US$2 billion in the Lansing facility, which employs about 900 people and is expected to grow to 1,700 at full capacity; the article also references a prior US$4.3 billion Tesla supply agreement and a US$1.4 billion investment at the Holland, Michigan plant.
- DeltaX announced on 14 August a US$141 million investment to build a North American headquarters and manufacturing campus in Monroe, Georgia, including a 100,000-square-foot BESS assembly facility on about 25 acres.
- DeltaX said the Georgia project is expected to create approximately 250 jobs and will support BESS, BMS, and AI-powered energy management technologies for utility-scale projects, renewable energy integration, data centres, and C&I applications.
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$1B Capital Commitment Launches Phoenix-Based Data Center Firm
Saragon has announced its official launch as a new U.S. data center company focused on colocation, high-density computing, and AI inference infrastructure.
- The company launches with ten data centers across nine U.S. markets, approximately 53 MW of installed power, and 259,000 square feet of colocation space, backed by up to $1 billion in committed capital from I Squared Capital.
- Saragon was established after I Squared’s acquisition of ten data center facilities from Cogent Fiber, LLC; the portfolio spans Chicago, Atlanta, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Baltimore, Houston, Nashville, and Stockton. The company says it will expand through targeted investment, customer-led expansion, and additional acquisitions, with Steve Orlando as CEO and Kevin Dalton as President.
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As AI power demand soars, Musk turns to natural gas
The Wall Street Journal reports that SpaceX is increasingly relying on natural gas to power its expanding AI infrastructure.
- SpaceX is building massive AI data centers and a $16.8 billion chip-manufacturing facility in Texas, and is installing its own natural-gas turbines and power plants because grid connections can take years.
- The report says SpaceX’s data-center power capacity could rise from about 2 GW to 10 GW or even 15 GW by end-2027; it also says SpaceX and xAI have used gas turbines in Tennessee and Mississippi, and that SpaceX has secured cloud agreements with Google and Anthropic.
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AI’s volatile power demand is damaging its own data centers
This article explains that AI data centers are causing new reliability and grid-stability problems, based on interviews and reported observations rather than a single new company announcement.
- Power equipment strain: Rapid AI workload swings are reportedly damaging batteries, generators, turbines, cooling systems, transformers, and flywheels; examples include cracked gas-fired turbines at xAI’s Colossus site in Memphis, Tennessee, and batteries needing replacement within weeks or months.
- Grid and project impacts: The story says the issues are delaying or curtailing operations, including a 2.67-gigawatt AI campus in West Texas developed by Joulent Inc. with Chevron Corp., where power delivery is now expected in 2028 instead of 2027; NERC also issued a level-three alert for big data centers to address immediate grid risks by Aug. 3.
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Power Bottlenecks Push Data Centers Beyond Traditional Hubs
DCByte has released a report on how power availability is increasingly determining global data center development and shifting growth toward secondary markets.
- The report says the global data center index measures markets by demand (40%), delivery (35%), and depth (25%); Ashburn, Virginia led the Americas, Johor, Malaysia led Asia-Pacific, and London led EMEA.
- It notes that Ashburn has 5.6 GW of live capacity and 15 GW in pipeline as of Q1, while grid connections can take five to seven years there; Johor has grown from less than 10 MW five years ago to about 1 GW in four years. The report also highlights constraints in Tokyo, Dublin, and Amsterdam, and says operators face risks from transformers, switchgear, gas turbines, fiber diversity, water, construction labor, and liquid cooling / AI rack densities above 100 kW.
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How ICE and a data center turned a small Pittsburgh suburb into a civic battleground
Public Source published a reported feature on Springdale’s split over a planned data center and ICE cooperation, describing ongoing community backlash and local government responses.
- The article says Springdale approved a hyperscale data center plan in December and that the 50-acre Cheswick Generating Station site was bought in November by Dynamo DC; the company says the 652,300-square-foot facility would bring 80 to 100 permanent jobs and millions in annual tax dollars.
- It also reports that Springdale police have operated under a 287(g) ICE task force agreement since November, leading to several arrests, protests, and disputes over transparency, public comment rules, and policing outside borough limits.
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Nuclear Momentum Meets the Megawatt Test
The article is a news analysis of recent U.S. nuclear industry announcements and their links to AI and data center demand.
- Constellation Energy advanced the Crane Clean Energy Center restart in Pennsylvania after a FERC waiver and NRC draft environmental review, supported by a 20-year agreement with Microsoft for all electricity, capacity and clean-energy attributes.
- The piece also covers Kairos Power’s Hermes 2, four criticality demonstrations, the Savannah River Site data center proposal, DOE’s $17.5 billion conditional financing for AP1000 reactors, Walmart’s nuclear PPA, Palisades restart progress, and NRC/DOE fuel and licensing reforms.
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Top House Democrat Attacks Musk over Gas-Powered Data Centers in Tennessee, Mississippi
Rep. Frank Pallone has sent a July 28 letter to Elon Musk warning that SpaceXAI’s Colossus 1 and Colossus 2 data centers may pose pollution risks in Tennessee and Mississippi.
- Pallone, the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said the rapid spread of AI facilities is straining local infrastructure and alarming residents.
- The article references a July 28 letter and describes community concerns over the pace of giant data centers being built in local neighborhoods.
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Brookfield, NextEra to Develop $100B Data Center Campus at DOE’s Paducah Site, Paired With 4.6 GW of Dedicated Generation
Brookfield and NextEra Energy have announced a $100 billion plan to develop a privately funded AI data center campus at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Paducah Site in Kentucky, paired with up to 4.6 GW of dedicated generation.
- The campus is expected to be fully built out in 2032 and support up to 1.8 GW of utility capacity and more than 1.2 GW of compute load; Brookfield will lease land from DOE and develop and operate the campus.
- NextEra Energy will own and operate up to 2 GW of natural gas generation and up to 2.6 GW of BESS added in stages; the project also involves Big Rivers Electric, Jackson Purchase Energy Cooperative, and Paducah Power System, with KPSC approval still required for the power service agreement.