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Virginia Data Center Intel
Latest data center news, projects, power and policy across Virginia — updated daily.
Virginia · Construction & power moves · 40
full tracker →Land, power, and interconnection moves across Virginia — each traced to primary filings.
Top JUST IN — Virginia
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PJM proposes reliability standards for large-load ride-through (no docket)
Source: PJM Inside Lines · Sep 10, 2026PJM Inside Lines reports that PJM has proposed new interconnection reliability requirements for large loads, including data centers and crypto-mining facilities, to require facilities to stay connected during grid disturbances and “riding through” voltage and frequency excursions. The article says the proposal responds to a June 18 FERC order and that “PJM plans to file proposed solutions to FERC in November.”
Backed by 1 primary filing — sign in or book a call to see all sources.
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PJM, Dominion Review Large Load Transfer Event
Source: PJM Inside Lines · Aug 11, 2026PJM Inside Lines reports that PJM is reviewing changes to interconnection reliability requirements for Large Loads after a July 22 event in Virginia in which “nearly 4,000 MW of data center load trip offline unexpectedly.” The article also says FERC ordered NERC to create enforceable Reliability Standards for computational loads and that the first phase of new enforcement provisions is due Dec. 31, 2026.
Backed by 1 primary filing — sign in or book a call to see all sources.
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Opening Statement of Commissioner Christie to House Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security
Source: FERCFERC Commissioner Christie warned that U.S. grid reliability faces “potentially catastrophic consequences” as “unprecedented forecasts for demand increases” from “data centers, including Artificial Intelligence (AI)” collide with fast-retiring dispatchable generation and policy pressure. In PJM, he said, “PJM faces unprecedented load growth due to the proliferation of data centers,” while also noting that EPA power-plant rules could “forcibly” accelerate coal retirements and make new gas generation “extremely difficult, if not virtually impossible” to build. Christie also said the PJM interconnection queue “largely consists of intermittent generation, primarily wind and solar,” and that legal challenges are delaying needed natural-gas pipeline infrastructure.
Backed by 1 primary filing — sign in or book a call to see all sources.
Recent Virginia data center news
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Fault in Data Center Alley Triggered 3 GW Load Drop
Dominion Energy said a transmission line fault in Ashburn, Virginia caused data centers to transfer load to backup power automatically, while PJM reported more than 3 GW of demand dropped from the grid without reliability impacts.
- Dominion said the event began when a transmission line in Ashburn faulted and went out of service, after which data centers elected to transfer load off the system.
- Dominion said no load was shed by the utility; the data centers’ own control systems shifted to backup power for a very short period, and Dominion later restored normal operating conditions.
- PJM said more than 3 GW of load disconnected, about 3% of system demand, with a measurable frequency change but no reliability impacts.
- The article also notes Loudoun County has 209 completed data centers and 43 under construction, with more than 53 million square feet of operational and planned capacity.
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After the AI Rush, Can Data Centers Reclaim Sustainability?
The article argues that data center sustainability is under renewed pressure as AI-driven growth increases power, cooling, and water demands, while regulation and community opposition are pushing operators back toward efficiency and environmental stewardship.
- Regulatory and community pressure: Greenpeace criticism, moratoria in Singapore, Amsterdam, Dublin, and a one-year New York State moratorium on projects over 50 MW are cited as examples of tighter oversight and permitting constraints.
- Industry response and current context: Operators have long used PUE and renewable PPAs, but the article says AI is shifting priorities toward performance; it cites Frontier’s $1.8 billion permanent carbon removal commitment and an additional $915 million in funding, plus Amazon’s claim it is 75% of the way to water neutrality by 2030 and has cut Northern Virginia water use by 42% year over year.
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10 Reasons You Cannot Afford to Miss DCF Trends Summit 2026
Data Center Frontier has announced the 2026 Data Center Frontier Trends Summit, a three-day event focused on AI infrastructure execution, to be held August 4–6 at the Hyatt Regency Reston.
- The summit will cover power, site selection, design, density, liquid cooling, investment, supply chains, commissioning, and community acceptance across sessions, roundtables, and tours.
- Featured participants include leaders from EdgeCore, Schneider Electric, Motivair, Digital Realty, Compass Datacenters, NVIDIA, Meta, Open Compute Project, Equinix, Dominion Energy, Vantage Data Centers, NTT Global Data Centers, and Sabey Data Centers.
- The article is a conference announcement and promotional overview, not a report on a completed project or deal.
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Roundup: Nexus Technology Cup / Delfin LNG facility / Grid under pressure
Delfin has advanced its second floating LNG vessel project off Louisiana, while the article also cites a Bloomberg forecast on U.S. data center electricity demand.
- Delfin issued a limited notice-to-proceed to Siemens Energy for key equipment on a second floating LNG vessel off Louisiana as part of the more than $24 billion Delfin LNG project.
- The project will be developed in phases; this contract advances phase two, and Delfin is targeting a final investment decision on the second phase before year-end. The article also says U.S. data centers could use about 20% of U.S. electricity by 2035 and face a 19-gigawatt power shortfall.
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Data centres, rising demand, and Alberta's energy bills
The Pembina Institute published an analysis arguing that Alberta’s proposed approach to powering data centres could raise electricity costs and emissions, and urging better policy on grid access, efficiency, storage, and flexible demand.
- The article says Alberta’s BYOG (bring your own generation) framework would effectively require new data centres to add gas-fired generation, limiting cleaner options even when renewables and storage could be cheaper and faster to build.
- It cites Meta’s recently announced 1,800 MW data centre in Sturgeon County and says the project was acknowledged by Alberta officials as carrying up to a 6% decrease on the transmission portion of consumer bills, equal to about $1.50/month for the average household.
- The piece is commentary/analysis, not a fresh project announcement, and it references other jurisdictions such as Nevada, Texas, and Minnesota as examples of data-centre power procurement using cleaner resources.
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How much energy do data centers and artificial intelligence use?
Our World in Data has published an analytical article on how much electricity data centers and artificial intelligence use, and how much energy individual AI queries consume.
- The article estimates that data centers used around 485 TWh in 2025, with AI-focused data centers accounting for about 155 TWh and 0.5% of global electricity.
- It compares IEA and S&P Global estimates, notes that crypto mining explains part of the gap, and says a typical ChatGPT/Gemini/Claude query uses only a small amount of electricity, while future AI demand remains highly uncertain.
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Episode for July 17, 2026
The Allegheny Front has released a July 17, 2026 podcast episode summarizing several environmental and infrastructure stories in Pennsylvania and Ohio.
- The episode notes a movement to slow down data center development in Pennsylvania, while state lawmakers were not ready to repeal a key tax exemption.
- It also references gas processing facility expansion opposition in rural Pennsylvania, four injection wells in southeastern Ohio that were stopped at the request of state regulators, and forests in Allegheny and Fayette Counties being added to the Old-Growth Forest Network.
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Project Tango Denial Challenges Wall Street's AI Power Bet
Palm Beach County has rejected Project Tango, a proposed 600 MW AI-focused campus, after commissioners voted 5–1 against the application. The story is an analysis of local permitting risk and AI load forecasting, not a first-person corporate announcement.
- Commissioners voted 5–1 to reject Project Tango, despite months of redesigns, updated technical studies, and a recommendation for approval from county planning staff.
- Jefferies estimated Florida Power & Light’s capital plan through 2032 includes about 6 GW of prospective data center load, equal to roughly $12 billion in capital investment and 12% of planned spending; the denial was without prejudice.
- The filing described Project Tango as a 600 MW campus supporting AI and cloud workloads and relying on battery energy storage rather than routine diesel-generator operation.
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FERC Orders Mandatory NERC Reliability Standards for Data Center and Other Computational Loads
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has ordered NERC to develop mandatory reliability standards and registry criteria for computational loads, including data centers and crypto mining operations, by year-end 2026.
- Phase I filing due Dec. 31, 2026: NERC must file one or more new or modified reliability standards for integrating computational loads, plus related Glossary updates and Rules of Procedure changes, including registry criteria for entities to be directly covered.
- Phase II plan due Mar. 1, 2027: NERC must submit an informational filing describing its work plan for additional standards; FERC cited grid disturbances, including a 1,500 MW data-center load loss and crypto load ride-through events in ERCOT, as evidence of urgency.
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High-density Data Center and Colocation Footprints
365 Data Centers has outlined its high-density data center expansion strategy, combining upgrades to existing facilities with a new AI-ready capacity pipeline.
- The company says organic expansion will upgrade facilities it already owns and operates in Pennsylvania, Texas, Georgia, and Colorado to support higher-density deployments.
- Through a partnership with Aphorio Carter, 365 Data Centers says it is developing about 200 MW of AI-ready capacity across key U.S. markets over the next 18-24 months, with initial projects in Colorado and Kentucky and other sites under evaluation in Connecticut, Kentucky, Virginia, Ohio, and Tennessee.