Friday, February 27, 2026

6.5 GW Under Construction, 30% Slippage: The Real Cost of Texas's Datacenter Sprint

Texas now commands two-thirds of new North American datacenter capacity, with 6.5 GW under construction and 22 GW in the pipeline, but the buildout can't outrun its constraints: six projects are already delayed, and the industry faces 30-50% slippage on 2026 deliveries. Grid headroom, transmission bottlenecks, and permitting timelines are the binding variables, not demand. That infrastructure gap is drawing federal attention too, with the bipartisan GRID Act proposing to force any new facility over 20 MW entirely off-grid, carrying $1 million daily fines for noncompliance. If that bill gains traction while slippage rates hold, the next 18 months of Texas siting and procurement decisions get considerably more expensive.

Today's Lead

Texas is pulling away from Northern Virginia as the datacenter capital of North America, with 6.5 GW under construction and 22 GW slated for deployment, but the sprint is already stumbling: six Texas projects are delayed and the industry faces a 30-50% slippage rate on scheduled 2026 deliveries. JLL analysis confirms Texas now captures two-thirds of new North American capacity, driven by ERCOT's combination of solar, wind, and natural gas generation that can scale faster than competing markets. The constraint is no longer demand; it's whether grid headroom, transmission infrastructure, and permitting can keep pace with a pipeline that dwarfs what any U.S. market has absorbed before.

[1]·[2]

Power

Google's Self-Powered Playbook Takes Shape Across Three States

Google is executing a multi-state power strategy that treats each market differently. In Minnesota, the company signed a 1.9 GW deal with Xcel Energy anchored by 300 MW of Form Energy iron-air batteries (the largest long-duration battery project ever announced), 1.4 GW of wind, and 200 MW of solar, funded through a "clean energy accelerator charge" that isolates Google's costs from ratepayers. In Nevada, Google locked 150 MW of new geothermal capacity with Ormat Technologies under a Clean Transition Tariff awaiting Public Utilities Commission of Nevada review in H2 2026.

The model's portability is the real story: Google's head of energy market innovation Briana Kobor called the CTT a "repeatable framework." Form Energy CEO Mateo Jaramillo confirmed this is the company's first direct datacenter deployment, with its West Virginia factory targeting 500 MW annual production by 2028. If Minnesota's PUC and Commerce Department approve the rate structure, expect other states to model similar arrangements.

The risk sits in scaling: iron-air batteries are commercially nascent, Form must ramp production dramatically, and regulatory approval in two states simultaneously is far from guaranteed.

[3]·[4]·[5]

Water

Desert States Tighten the Spigot as Texas Goes Air-Cooled

Water is hardening into the primary permitting and capital risk for western datacenters. Meta's Eagle Mountain, Utah campus quietly drew over 35 million gallons in 2024 under a confidentiality agreement. Google's Henderson, Nevada facility consumed 352 million gallons. Southern Nevada has adopted permit restrictions limiting new evaporative cooling developments. Tucson passed an ordinance requiring very large water users to submit conservation plans before accessing municipal supply, triggered by a reportedly AWS-linked "Project Blue" proposal.

Against this backdrop, Google's upcoming Wilbarger County, Texas facility committed to air-cooling technology that eliminates water consumption for cooling entirely, with co-located renewable generation built by AES. The tradeoff is real: air-cooled chillers are energy-intensive, and performance in Texas heat remains unproven at scale. Whether Google's system truly eliminates cooling water or merely minimizes it won't be clear until the facility is operational. Watch for operational data and whether other Texas-bound hyperscalers follow the air-cooled model or stick with evaporative systems in a state where water politics are intensifying.

[6]·[7]

Politics

Bipartisan Federal Push to Force Datacenters Off the Grid

The GRID Act, introduced by Connecticut Senator Blumenthal and Missouri Senator Hawley, is the first bipartisan federal bill targeting datacenter power costs. New facilities drawing 20 MW or more must source power entirely outside the grid; existing facilities get a 10-year transition with mandatory "zero rate effect credits" covering grid upgrade costs. Violations carry $1 million daily fines. This aligns with Trump's State of the Union statement that tech companies "have the obligation to provide for their own power needs."

Separately, nine states have introduced datacenter construction pause legislation, and Sen. Sanders continues pushing a federal moratorium. Greg LeRoy of Good Jobs First argues that Community Benefits Agreements, often positioned as mitigating tools, are structurally ill-suited for hyperscale facilities that generate minimal local jobs and consume disproportionate resources, with states losing 52-91 cents per dollar of tax breaks granted.

For Texas operators, the GRID Act would accelerate behind-the-meter generation investment and reshape siting economics. The bill hasn't reached Senate Republican leadership yet, making its path uncertain, but the bipartisan framing gives it more durability than previous attempts.

[8]·[9]

Politics

Community Opposition Is Professionalizing, Not Fading

In Adams County, Ohio, AES Ohio disclosed to PJM a 1,300 MW datacenter load request near the Stuart Substation with phased energization starting 2028. No developer has identified itself, but residents aren't waiting. Laura Harper is mapping regulatory pathways for water withdrawals and discharges; Nikki Gerber is digging into NPDES permit requirements and Ohio River watershed impacts; Jessica Adams Baker is assembling public records packets from other datacenter communities.

In Lower Mount Bethel Township, Pennsylvania, developers Peron Development and J.G. Petrucci Co. Inc. framed their proposal as "responsible" but provided no megawatt capacity, water consumption figures, or timeline. In Wise County, Virginia, the proposed Wise Innovation Hub plans 2 million square feet of datacenter space with on-site gas generation from Houston-based Red Post Energy scaling to 500-600 MW.

The pattern across all three: communities are organizing earlier, building technical literacy faster, and demanding specifics before developers file formal applications. Unzoned rural land remains the sharpest vulnerability, allowing industrial development without resident input unless townships proactively adopt ordinances.

[10]·[11]·[12]

Politics

Solar's Red-State Campaign Targets Texas Voters

Katie Miller, a Trump administration veteran linked to Elon Musk, launched a coordinated social media campaign promoting utility-scale solar to Republican audiences. She amplified polling from First Solar and American Energy First, a newly formed coalition that explicitly surveyed likely voters in Texas alongside Arizona, Florida, Indiana, and Ohio. First Solar's poll found 51% of Republicans support utility-scale solar, jumping to 70% if projects avoid Chinese supply chains. The coalition's backers remain undisclosed. This matters for Texas datacenter power procurement: if Interior Department permitting freezes on federal solar projects extend or soften based on political pressure, it directly affects the renewable generation pipeline feeding ERCOT. Whether this campaign shifts administration policy on solar permitting is the key variable to watch.

[13]

Sources we cited

13 articles across 11 publishers · 228 reviewed today

[1]Datacenter Knowledge
Could Texas Overtake Northern Virginia as the Data Center Capital?
Feb 18, 2026·Fresh analysis from JLL indicates that explosive capacity growth, rising rents, and power constraints are reshaping where data centers are b…
[2]Bank Info Security
Data Center Capacity Crisis Puts 2026 Road Maps at Risk
Feb 24, 2026·Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning , …
[3]Latitude Media
With Form Energy deal, Google’s clean transition tariff is growing up
Feb 25, 2026·But the agreement, via Minnesota's Xcel Energy, is much more complicated than backing one massive battery project. The post With Form Energ…
[4]Datacenter Knowledge
Google Taps Geothermal Power for Nevada Data Centers
Feb 17, 2026·A new partnership with Ormat and NV Energy will see Google harness geothermal power in Nevada. Google is advancing its renewable energy str…
[5]The Tech Buzz
Google Bets Big on Self-Powered Minnesota Data Center
Feb 24, 2026·Google announces Minnesota data center powered by dedicated solar, wind and battery storage per CNBC Facility will avoid drawing from exist…
[6]Rare Earth Exchanges
AI Data Centers vs. Desert Water: When Compute Collides With Scarcity
Feb 27, 2026·Hyperscale AI infrastructure is expanding rapidly across Western desert states where land, tax incentives, and grid interconnects are often …
[7]New Atlas
Google promises its upcoming Texas data center won't use any water for cooling
Feb 25, 2026·Among the many problems posed by the rapid proliferation of data centers around the world is the strain on local water supplies. These facil…
[8]CT Mirror
Blumenthal teams up with GOP senator to rein in data centers
Feb 26, 2026·Hoping to blunt concerns over the rising costs of electricity in Connecticut and around the country, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., …
[9]Tech Policy Press
‘Community Benefits’ from a Hyperscale Data Center are a Mighty Tall Order
Feb 26, 2026·Greg LeRoy directs Good Jobs First, a national nonprofit watchdog group on economic development issues. Saline, Michigan, December 1, 2025.…
[10]People's Defender
Residents mobilize as data center discussions gain momentum
Feb 27, 2026·Residents gather in the round room at Manchester High School to discuss concerns, share research, and ask questions about possible data cent…
[11]The Morning Call
Developers propose ‘responsible’ data center in rural Northampton County community. Neighbors are skeptical
Feb 25, 2026·A pair of developers are working on plans for what they call a “responsible” data center in Northampton County that addresses concerns about…
[12]Cardinal News
Data center complex with gas power plant planned for Wise County
Feb 25, 2026·Plans are underway to develop a data center complex in Wise County that would include approximately 2 million square feet of building space …
[13]Latitude Media
Is someone paying Katie Miller to push solar?
Feb 26, 2026·Miller, a loyal Trump aide with close ties to Elon Musk, has spent February promoting solar on X. The post Is someone paying Katie Miller to…

Search across 25,000+ tracked articles → coming with paid