Virginia Data Center Intel

Recent Virginia data center news

• Jan 20, 2026

  GSN Roundup: Blackstone and Willis Tower, JV’s Big Data Center Refi, and Prestige Closing

  Affinius Capital partnership is seeking a $925 million mortgage to refinance the second phase of the Gainesville Crossing Data Center Campus.

  • Deal specifics: The JV of Affinius and Corscale is pursuing a $925 million mortgage to refinance a fully leased, 482,000 sq ft building with 72 megawatts of capacity; the borrower prefers a floating-rate loan with a 2–3 year term, and Newmark is advising. The tenant is an undisclosed large cloud-computing provider on an initial 15-year lease; the building is part of a planned five-building campus totaling 306 MW.
  • Background & supporting facts: The 130-acre site was bought from Buchanan Partners in mid-2020 for $74.5 million after rezoning in late 2019; Corscale is the data-center arm of Patrinely and Affinius’ predecessor firm is USAA Real Estate, which helped acquire the site. Financial performance issues led Larry H. Miller Co. to close Prestige Financial Services amid an MLB expansion funding push (expansion fee expected to top $2 billion), and Blackstone is separately exploring options around a $1.32 billion securitized loan on Willis Tower.
• Jan 17, 2026

  White House and Governors Pressure Grid Operator to Boost Power, Slow Electricity Hikes

  The White House and 13 governors urged PJM Interconnection to hold a power auction requiring tech companies to bid on 15-year contracts so data centers pay for new generation capacity.

  • Main announcement: The White House, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, joined by 13 governors, called on PJM to run an auction for 15-year power contracts that would have data center operators (not regular consumers) finance new power plants; they also asked PJM to extend a wholesale payment cap that currently limits increases through mid-2028.
  • Background and details: PJM was not invited to the event and said it will review recommendations; later PJM issued its own plan proposing a formula to cut power to large grid users (including data centers) during emergencies and to fast-track interconnection of new plants. The mid-Atlantic grid covers parts/all of 13 states (New Jersey to Illinois) and Washington, D.C., and analysts say ratepayers are already paying billions more to underwrite power supplies for some data centers (no specific dollar amounts provided in this article).
• Jan 17, 2026

  Data center news: DTE agrees to power terms for Saline Township data center

  DTE Energy accepted conditions from the Michigan Public Service Commission for special contracts to power an OpenAI and Oracle data center in Saline Township.

  • DTE Energy accepted commission conditions to supply power under special contracts for a proposed 1.4-gigawatt Saline Township data center involving OpenAI and Oracle; Attorney General Dana Nessel and others requested a rehearing of the Dec. 18 fast-tracked approval, while DTE reserved rights to challenge future commission decisions and confirmed aggregate revenues will cover service costs.
  • Related local actions and details: Lyon Township residents and experts flagged risks for a planned 1.8-million-square-foot site; Saline Township site work continues on a 2.2-million-square-foot project after rezoning of 575 acres; Lansing City Council proposed dedicating 10% of Board of Water and Light revenue from data center utility use to housing services (final vote expected by late February); Saginaw adopted a 6-month moratorium to craft rules and encourage development on post-industrial brownfields; Van Buren Township and Allen Park controversies noted (Van Buren: up to 3.6 million gallons of water a day; Allen Park: 26-megawatt proposal).
• Jan 16, 2026

  Evolving Technologies, Outdated Regulations Impact Mid-Atlantic Generation Permitting

  Saul Ewing partners Thomas Prevas and Dan Skowronski summarize state-level procedural and permitting reforms in the Mid-Atlantic (Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey) that centralize permitting review and consider expanding regulated utility roles in generation to address reliability and load-growth challenges.

  • Main announcement/action: States are pursuing centralization of permitting review at state commissions and public utility boards and are exploring regulated utility ownership/sponsorship of generation assets as a policy response in 2026; Maryland overrode a governor veto in December 2025 to study data center/energy co-location, and Pennsylvania created a commission to study data center attraction and co-location of generation assets.
  • Background and details: The commentary highlights data center campus demands of 500 to 1,000 MW, legal/regulatory gaps for behind-the-meter co-located generation, the emergence of CPCN-like programs for battery storage (Maryland) and proposed classification of storage as an “inherently beneficial use” in New Jersey, and notes unresolved roles for FERC, RTOs (including PJM), and state public service commissions; it is an expert commentary summarizing observed and proposed reforms rather than announcing a single new project.
• Jan 16, 2026

  Meta Builds a Nuclear Supply Chain for the AI Era

  Meta has announced a package of multi-gigawatt nuclear agreements and related support to secure firm, long-duration power for its AI data center buildout.

  • Main announcement: Meta signed a set of deals that together could support up to 6.6 GW of new and existing clean power by 2035, including a 20-year PPA for more than 2,600 MW tied to three Vistra plants (Perry, Davis-Besse, Beaver Valley), an agreement with TerraPower to support up to eight Natrium plants (Meta funding for two Natrium units totaling up to 690 MW with delivery targeted as early as 2032, plus rights to energy from up to six additional units ~2.1 GW by 2035), and a deal with Oklo to enable a prepay-backed, scalable up-to-1.2 GW nuclear power campus in Pike County, Ohio.
  • Background and implementation details:DOE announced $2.7 billion to bolster domestic uranium enrichment over the next decade (including HALEU support); Oklo has a DOE Nuclear Safety Design Agreement for an Aurora fuel facility at Idaho National Laboratory; TerraPower’s initial two-unit site is expected to be identified “in the coming months”; many elements remain in early site-selection, licensing, fuel-qualification, and interconnection stages, with explicit timelines ranging from 2026 (Meta’s Prometheus data center) through 2032–2035 for advanced reactor deliveries.
• Jan 16, 2026

  Video: “The Hidden Costs of the Cloud: Data Centers and AI in Virginia”

  The Commonwealth of Virginia is experiencing rapid data center expansion with no current regulatory oversight.

  • No regulatory oversight: Virginia is undergoing a massive economic, technological, and environmental transformation centered on data centers, which require huge amounts of energy, land, and water; utilities are legally obligated to serve these facilities regardless of grid impact and Virginia ratepayers are subsidizing the buildout.
  • Call to action and sources: The piece urges constituents to urge elected officials to support meaningful reform and oversight of the data center industry and links to resources for action (YouTube video and https://pecva.org/datacenters).
• Jan 16, 2026

  With All Eyes on AI, Data Centers Are Commercial Real Estate’s Jewel for 2026

  The article reports that the data center sector is entering an unprecedented growth phase.

  • Record leasing activity and sustained hyperscaler demand are driving the market; the piece notes first-quarter 2026 deployments are already underway, highlights emerging demand from “neo-clouds”, and cites historic leasing/absorption across major US and European markets (Atlanta; Dallas–Fort Worth; Milan; Frankfurt; Paris).
  • The article is an analytical market summary referencing recent earnings call commentary and market reports, and it identifies power access as the primary constraint (fast-growth markets vs. grid/permitting-constrained markets such as London, Northern Virginia, Amsterdam, Dublin); it also cites financial metrics of stabilized NOI >10% and development profit margins >50%. This is commentary/analysis rather than a first-time corporate announcement.
• Jan 16, 2026

  Trump Moves to Have Tech Giants Pay for Surging Power Costs

  The Trump administration, together with governors of several Northeastern states, announced a push for an emergency PJM wholesale electricity auction that would require tech companies to fund new power plants.

  • Main action: The administration and state governors will sign a non-binding “statement of principles” urging PJM Interconnection LLC to hold a one-time reliability backstop auction for 15-year contracts exclusively for data center owners/operators, with the White House and governors urging the auction to be held by the end of September to support rapid new construction (estimated to back ~$15 billion of new power plants).
  • Background & implementation details: The plan targets the PJM region (serving >67 million people), seeks to ensure tech giants provide guaranteed revenues to generators (reducing price volatility and bankruptcy risk), asks PJM to extend the price cap for auctions held through this year, and was discussed with stakeholders including PJM executives, utilities, developers, Wall Street and hyperscalers; the statement is non-binding and PJM representatives were not invited to the announcement.
• Jan 16, 2026

  How Trump’s anti-renewables policies collide with growth of AI

  The Trump administration has paused federal offshore wind permits and curtailed renewable energy incentives, while rising electricity demand from AI data centers is increasing strain on the grid.

  • Federal actions halting renewables: The Department of the Interior paused several fully-permitted offshore wind projects mid-construction (five projects off the Atlantic coast were cited); the administration has required personal sign-off from Secretary Doug Burgum for new solar and wind on federal lands (only one new permission granted in the past year); the Republican-led budget bill shortened renewable tax credits originally established under the Inflation Reduction Act.
  • Demand-side and mitigation details:Hundreds of billions of dollars (USD) are being invested into AI data centers nationwide, driving sharp electricity demand increases; an example project in the Pacific Northwest involved a data center company paying for a new grid battery that the utility will build and own, allowing the data center to come online earlier while the utility retains ownership of the battery.
• Jan 16, 2026

  US ROUNDUP: Duke Energy, Elevate, Fluence with BrightNight and Cordelio progress BESS projects

  Duke Energy has brought online a 50MW/200MWh BESS at the former Allen coal plant in North Carolina.

  • Main announcement: Duke Energy commissioned a 50MW/200MWh battery energy storage system at the former Allen coal plant on Lake Wylie, North Carolina, costing around US$100 million, finished under budget and ahead of schedule, began serving customers in November with final testing ongoing; construction of a second 167MW/668MWh BESS will start in May on a 10-acre site, and both systems are eligible for federal ITCs covering 40% (including an additional 10% for reinvestment into an energy community).
  • Additional project actions and timelines: Fluence Energy will supply its Gridstack Pro BESS (US-made cells/modules/enclosures/thermal systems) for BrightNight and Cordelio Power’s 300MW/1,200MWh Pioneer Clean Energy Centre in Yuma County, Arizona (PPA with APS; commercial operations expected April 2027); Elevate Renewables has acquired the 150MW/600MWh Prospect Power BESS in Virginia (scheduled operations mid-2026).
    • Energy Storage Summit USA: 24-25 March 2026, Dallas, TX; agenda includes FEOC challenges, power demand forecasting, and BESS supply chain management.