Virginia Data Center Intel

Recent Virginia data center news

• Jun 25, 2026

  Troubles with Transmission

  Valley Link Transmission LLC (a Dominion Energy-led joint venture) revealed a possible route for the Joshua Falls-Yeat transmission line, putting the Goodwin family farm and hundreds of other properties in central Virginia at risk.

  • Project specifics and immediate action: The proposed Joshua Falls-Yeat line would run roughly 115 miles from Lynchburg to Culpeper, create a 200-foot right-of-way, clear 2,600+ acres of forests and farms, and place transmission towers up to 160 feet tall roughly every quarter mile; the project is described as a 765 kilovolt backbone connecting the Joshua Falls and Yeat substations and is within a possible route announced by Valley Link Transmission LLC (a joint venture including Dominion Energy).
  • Background, drivers, and procedural context: The buildout is driven chiefly by data center demand (Dominion reported requests to serve over 70 gigawatts of data center load); Dominion plans to spend up to $3 billion per year on transmission projects, PEC reports over 250 transmission-related projects planned or under construction, and the Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) is intervening at the Virginia State Corporation Commission on cost allocation disputes (PEC plans additional interventions in 2026). Other related projects cited include Morrisville–Wishing Star, Charlottesville–Gordonsville upgrades, and a FirstEnergy rebuild crossing Shenandoah National Park.
• Jun 25, 2026

  2026 General Assembly Takeaways

  Piedmont Environmental Council reports the Virginia General Assembly passed the Distributed Generation Expansion Act and related measures during the 2026 legislative session, advancing rooftop/parking-lot solar, agrivoltaics, battery storage rules, modest data center transparency, and statewide accessory dwelling unit legalization.

  • Distributed Generation Expansion Act & energy reforms: Requires Dominion Energy to build 1 gigawatt of solar on “built” environments (e.g., brownfields, parking lots); legislature also passed a bill defining agrivoltaics (signed by Governor Spanberger in June) and enacted battery storage requirements and a subsequent workgroup to define incentives.
  • Data centers, budget stalemate & transparency measures: The General Assembly is deadlocked in a budget fight over a $1.9 billion data-center tax exemption; lawmakers passed periodic water usage reports, noise studies near residential areas, a demand-response bill, and utility disclosure requirements for substations/voltage; the legislature will reconvene for a special budget session this month and PEC is seeking a seat on the related state working group.
• Jun 25, 2026

  Who’s Protecting the Piedmont?

  The Piedmont Environmental Council profiles three individuals protecting the Virginia Piedmont.

  • Main announcement: PEC spotlights three local stewards — volunteer Barry Buschow, community partner Greg Pirio, and legacy donor George Grayson — describing concrete actions such as Barry installing a riparian buffer in 2023 and pursuing a goal to plant more than 1,000 trees, Greg organizing the Sterling Community Action group after a gas-turbine power plant opened ~1 year ago 150 yards from homes (community-installed noise monitoring and an PEC-supported air quality study), and George’s long-term support including joining the PEC Board in 2015 and participating in PEC’s Bill Backer Legacy Society (first gift in 1992).
  • Background & details: The profile references PEC programs including Plantings for the Piedmont, Virginia Grassland Bird Initiative, and the Community Farm at Roundabout Meadows; it states PEC and partners have collectively preserved over 440,000 acres, notes media coverage (Smithsonian Magazine, BBC), and identifies community actions (meetings, noise monitoring, air quality study) already underway with PEC facilitation.
• Jun 25, 2026

  On the Ground Updates – June 2026

  The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) summarizes regional land-use and infrastructure updates across multiple Virginia counties, highlighting implementation of Albemarle’s AC44 Comprehensive Plan and monitoring of transmission, solar, and data-center proposals.

  • AC44 implementation (Albemarle County): PEC reports a three-year implementation of the AC44 Comprehensive Plan with four major initiatives: Zoning Modernization, designation of Activity Centers for higher-density development, creation of the county’s first Multimodal Transportation Plan, and a two-stage approach to the Rural Area leading to the county’s first Rural Area Plan.
  • Regional project updates and permitting actions: Strata Energy withdrew the Maroon Solar conditional use application in Culpeper (may reapply later); multiple data centers are under construction in Culpeper (including Databank and STACK Infrastructure’s Culpeper Technology Campus and Copper Ridge, expected to break ground this summer); Dominion Energy acquired 85 acres adjacent to its Morrisville substation (possible expansion or battery storage); FirstEnergy plans to file its application in June to rebuild the Page-Sperryville 138 kV line; Dominion posted routes for the 765 kV Joshua Falls–Yeat line with public meetings in June/July. PEC is monitoring all items and engaging in public outreach and planning processes.
• Jun 25, 2026

  Tesla, Sunrun, Renew Home announce 16GW VPP framework, focus on PJM

  Sunrun, Renew Home and Tesla have announced a framework to aggregate residential batteries and smart thermostats into a national virtual power plant (VPP) to deliver more than 16GW of flexible energy capacity to hyperscalers and utilities (announcement dated 24 June).

  • Primary announcement: The companies will aggregate “hundreds of thousands” of Sunrun- and Tesla-operated home battery systems together with more than 8 million smart thermostats and devices managed by Renew Home into a VPP that the companies describe as creating the largest VPP in the country; it requires no additional hardware, software, interconnection, water, or land from offtakers. The framework provides a single procurement point and national coverage across major electricity markets, with available capacity allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
  • Background and implementation details: The arrangement reports >300MW available immediately in Virginia (home to “Data Centre Alley”) and projects at least 500MW in Virginia by 2030 as residential deployments grow; the parties have committed capacity to PJM’s proposed Reliability Backstop Procurement, which they say could immediately unlock over 1GW if accepted. The companies cite The Brattle Group analysis that improved grid utilisation could reduce US electricity bills by US$110 billion to US$170 billion over the next decade. Participating residential customers will receive compensation and rewards under grid-supporting programmes.
• Jun 25, 2026

  Carolina West Wireless to Transfer Mobile Network to Verizon

  Carolina West Wireless has announced it will shut down its wireless service by Sept. 30, 2026 and transition its network to Verizon.

  • Main action:Carolina West Wireless (CWW) will cease wireless operations by Sept. 30, 2026 and is transitioning its network to Verizon; customers who switch to Verizon before July 30 will receive a $150 Mastercard gift card per line and Verizon will not charge mobile line activation fees. CEO Slayton Stewart said the decision reflects rising infrastructure demands and the company pledged support for employees via severance and career services. CWW did not disclose the fate of its FCC-overseen wireless licenses.
  • Background and reaction: CWW was founded in 1991 and is owned by a partnership of Skyline Telephone and Surry Communications; the Competitive Carriers Association President & CEO Tim Donovan urged sustainable USF operational expense support for rural carriers and called on Congress and the FCC to act promptly. Links to CWW customer transition FAQs and local reporting are cited in the article.
• Jun 24, 2026

  Virginia Lawmakers Strike Data Center Tax Deal After Budget Standoff

  Virginia lawmakers approved a new electricity consumption tax on data center operators as part of the state’s biennial budget.

  • New tax details: The measure imposes an electricity consumption tax of $0.011 per kilowatt-hour on data center operators and was included in a roughly $75 billion biennial spending plan approved by the General Assembly (see HB30). The budget inclusion is described as a compromise that keeps a separate tax break intact.
  • Exemption and timeline: The package retains a sales-and-use tax exemption for data center operators that the Senate had proposed ending in 2027, which the article notes is eight years before its scheduled expiration. The announcement appears as a legislative budget action rather than a separate standalone policy release.
• Jun 24, 2026

  Construction employment rises in 30 states over past year, AGC reports

  The Associated General Contractors of America reported that construction employment increased in 30 states and the District of Columbia between May 2025 and May 2026.

  • Main announcement: AGC reported state construction employment increased in 30 states and D.C. between May 2025 and May 2026; Texas added 18,700 jobs (2.1%), North Carolina added 13,600, Wisconsin added 9,000, and Wisconsin posted the largest percentage increase (6.2%); California recorded the largest annual decline at 13,100 jobs (−1.5%).
  • Monthly detail and risks: From April to May, construction employment increased in 23 states and D.C., declined in 22 states, and was unchanged in 5 states; monthly leaders included Texas (+3,600) and Wisconsin (+2,900). AGC officials Ken Simonson and Jeffrey D. Shoaf cautioned that opposition to data center projects and uncertainty over federal transportation funding pose threats to future construction job growth.
• Jun 24, 2026

  Sunrun, Renew Home, and Tesla to aggregate 16GW of home energy resources across US for data center offtakers

  Sunrun, Renew Home and Tesla have announced a partnership to aggregate more than 16GW of residential energy capacity across the United States for sale to hyperscalers and utilities.

  • Aggregate capacity and mechanics: The partners say they will aggregate more than 16GW of residential capacity using hundreds of thousands of home battery systems (Sunrun, Tesla) and more than 8 million smart thermostats managed by Renew Home; the framework requires no new hardware, land, water, or interconnection from offtakers. Virginia availability cited as >300MW immediately, rising to at least 500MW by 2030; partners have also committed capacity to PJM’s Reliability Backstop which, if accepted, would unlock more than 1GW immediately with additional capacity in subsequent years.
  • Commercial terms and context: Capacity is being offered to hyperscalers and utilities on a first-come, first-served basis and is claimed to be deployable in months rather than years; the announcement is presented as a new commercial offering by the three companies and is positioned alongside a wider market trend (for example, Google’s recent 100MW VPP deal with Voltus).
• Jun 24, 2026

  100MW data center could be built in Wheeling, West Virginia

  Silicon Foundation has acquired a 15-acre, industrial-zoned site at 74 Warwood Avenue in Wheeling, West Virginia to develop a modular data center, with Stokes Inc named as the EPC contractor.

  • Main announcement: Silicon Foundation purchased a 15-acre parcel at 74 Warwood Avenue (former Centre Foundry) to build a 60,000 sq ft (5,575 sqm) data center; the site reportedly has an active 10MW grid connection with a defined path to 20-30MW and a longer-term 100MW campus, and Stokes Inc will act as EPC contractor. Timelines posted by Stokes list Phase 1 Q4 2026 and Phase 2 Q4 2027 but the company did not clarify whether those dates indicate start or completion of works.
  • Background & status: Local/state officials (West Virginia Office of Energy; Wheeling City Council) stated they have not received any applications for a data center project in Warwood/Ohio County; Silicon Foundation described plans as “in development, future details in due course”. Silicon Foundation was founded in January 2026 by Val Holovach and lists the Wheeling project as its sole site; Stokes lists other in-progress projects (12MW Compass Mining Oklahoma, 600MW near Niagara Falls NY, 6MW + BESS Buchanan VA).