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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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State Corporation Commission Says Virginians Should Not Pay for Data Center Transmission Infrastructure
The Virginia State Corporation Commission has ordered Dominion Energy to file a new cost assignment proposal within 90 days so data centers, rather than general ratepayers, bear transmission costs built solely to serve them.
- The SCC ruled on July 31, 2026 that large-load data centers cause the transmission line costs and that substations and other direct-connect transmission infrastructure should be assigned to the customers driving those costs.
- The ruling is not retroactive; already approved projects such as the Germanna Line and Daves Store Line remain shared, and the letter says the decision does not address new generation proposals, including multiple natural gas-fired power plants in Chesterfield and Cumberland.
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DCF Trends Summit 2026: Execution Took the Stage in Reston
Data Center Frontier has published a recap of the 2026 Data Center Frontier Trends Summit, highlighting the industry’s shift from projection to execution.
- The article says the summit in Reston focused on converting announced megawatts into energized capacity, with sessions on power, land, transmission, permitting, cooling, density, and social license.
- It also notes that the summit will move west to Glendale, Arizona, in May 2027, alongside the Microgrid Knowledge Conference. The piece is a conference recap and commentary, not a new corporate deal announcement.
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Land and Expand: The Gigawatt Credibility Test
This article is an analytical roundup of multiple recent U.S. data center announcements and one project termination, not a single new company release.
- The piece highlights new announcements from OpenAI, Microsoft, PowerPlay AI, Hut 8, Digital Realty, and Amazon, focusing on how projects are pairing scale with power supply, financing, water use, and community commitments.
- It also notes the termination of QTS’s portion of the Prince William Digital Gateway after litigation and local opposition, using it as a warning that entitlement and procedural issues can stop major projects.
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The 50 States of Power Decarbonization: States Pull Back on Clean Energy Commitments While Governors Step In to Address Large Load Additions in Q2 2026
The NC Clean Energy Technology Center has released its Q2 2026 edition of the 50 States of Power Decarbonization, summarizing state and utility actions on clean energy, emissions targets, large load customers, and resource planning.
- The report says all 50 states and Puerto Rico took 564 actions in Q2 2026, with about 650 introduced bills also under consideration; planned capacity additions in recent IRPs totaled 77,810 MW gas, 72,193 MW solar, 43,017 MW storage, 12,615 MW nuclear, and 12,327 MW wind.
- It highlights policy trends including pullbacks on clean energy policies, governor actions on large load customers, and requirements that large load customers contribute to programs such as low-income support and energy efficiency; top developments included New York delaying an emissions target, Georgia Power‘s BYONCE program, and Pennsylvania adopting a statewide model large load tariff.
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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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U.S. construction spending projected to slip 1.3% in 2026 as manufacturing slump drags market
FMI has published its third-quarter 2026 North American Engineering and Construction Outlook, projecting that U.S. construction spending will fall 1.3% to $2.214 trillion in 2026, while data centers and public infrastructure remain bright spots.
- Main forecast: FMI says U.S. construction spending will decline 1.3% to $2.214 trillion in 2026, with manufacturing construction down 17.4% to $178 billion and private data center construction up 21.4% to $60 billion.
- Additional context: The report cites the U.S. Census Bureau July 1 benchmark revision, 30-year mortgage rates above 6.5%, input price inflation of 7.6% YoY in June, and CBRE data showing hyperscalers absorbing over 2.2 gigawatts across top North American markets in Q1; it also forecasts power construction up 2.1% to $176 billion and nonbuilding structures up 2% to $431 billion.
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Patented: Solenic Medical’s Implant-Infection Device and 120 More Inventions Across North Texas
Solenic Medical has announced progress toward a pivotal clinical trial for its SOLA-2 alternating magnetic field system after receiving FDA Investigational Device Exemption approval.
- The company said the FDA approved its Investigational Device Exemption on June 23, 2026, clearing it to begin a pivotal trial for patients with periprosthetic joint infections and infected knee replacements.
- The trial is expected to enroll patients in the second half of 2026 at national orthopedic and academic centers; Solenic estimates global healthcare costs from these infections at more than $6 billion a year, potentially rising above $15 billion by 2035.
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Navigating Virginia’s Data Center Boom: Policy Shifts, Local Projects, and Future Challenges
Virginia is tightening its data center policy framework while multiple new projects and land deals continue to advance.
- Senators Richard Stuart and Russet Perry called on Gov. Abigail Spanberger on August 3 to convene a special legislative session on groundwater strain; other lawmakers are considering a statewide moratorium on new data center development.
- New rules that took effect July 1 include a 1.1 cents per kilowatt-hour electricity consumption tax capped at $600 million annually, plus Tier 4 backup generator requirements, noise studies, demand-flexibility measures, and transmission-cost scrutiny.
- The article also details several projects and land transactions, including Yondr/Cerberus’ 72MW Manassas campus, AWS’s Bridgefield Tech Center in Ashburn, and site activity in Petersburg, Franklin County, Hopewell, and Sterling.
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How Geographic Diversity Reduces Downtime Risk
DataBank has published a customer testimonial about disaster recovery and geographic diversity across multiple locations.
- The customer says spreading critical infrastructure across multiple DataBank locations, including Dallas and Virginia, helped reduce risk and improve operational resilience.
- The testimonial emphasizes protection against severe weather, regional outages, power or infrastructure disruptions, single-site dependency, and business continuity gaps; it also links to DataBank’s colocation and disaster recovery as a service pages, including FedRAMP and FISMA compliance information.
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Texas Hits Pause on Data Center Grid Connections Amid Growing Oversight Push
Governor Greg Abbott has ordered the Public Utility Commission of Texas and ERCOT to audit all data center projects in ERCOT’s interconnection process before any further approvals, and ERCOT has suspended Batch Zero Large Load classification notifications.
- Abbott’s August 3, 2026 letter requires project-level disclosures covering tax incentives, power use and generation plans, water use and cooling operations, community impacts, and facility ownership and control; projects that fail the audit must be denied grid connection.
- ERCOT said it will not issue the previously scheduled August 7, 2026 Batch Zero notifications and will seek a good cause exception at the August 20, 2026 PUCT open meeting; the article also cites Senate Bill 6 (signed June 2025) and notes Texas has over 474 GW of interconnection requests, about 90% tied to data centers.