Prince William County

Land use issues in Prince William County have an outsized impact on PEC’s nine-county region, considering its proximity to Fauquier and Loudoun.

Data Centers, Surging Power Demand Take Center Stage

Data Centers, Surging Power Demand Take Center Stage

The size, scale, and speed at which applications for data center projects are coming in and being approved is astounding.

Just this month, massive proposals moved forward in Culpeper, Louisa, and King George counties, with more being reviewed in Caroline and Stafford counties. Prince William, Loudoun, Fairfax, and Fauquier counties all have multiple active proposals for hyperscale data centers, which can demand hundreds of megawatts of power per campus. As an example, the data center campus just approved in King George County could total more than 1,200 MW alone.

The Environmental Footprint of the Digital Age

The Environmental Footprint of the Digital Age

Virginia is subsidizing billions of dollars in data center development on the backs of its ratepayers, without a full understanding of the long-term ramifications.

Initial Transmission Proposals – PEC Web Map

Initial Transmission Proposals – PEC Web Map

Transmission line proposals to serve the explosive growth of data centers in Virginia over the past few years have begun to roll in. On September 5, 2023, PJM, the organization that coordinates electricity transmission in 13 states and the District of Columbia, published 72 proposals identified as part of its data center load planning initiative. The public will learn more about which projects might move forward during PJM’s next Transmission Expansion Advisory Committee (TEAC) meeting on October 3, 2023. 

In the meantime, PEC has published this online web map to make it easier to view most of the proposals in one place. Viewers can use the online “Layer List” found on the right-hand side of the map to see the key and toggle on additional layers of interest. Please note, these are general paths, not specific routes.

View the transmission line proposal map fullscreen >>

Additional Background:

Data center development in Northern Virginia has been accelerating for years, with a higher concentration in Loudoun County than anywhere else in the world. Data centers use an incredible amount of power, which has been increasing over time as demand for data storage and computing power has skyrocketed. Currently, requests for power are coming in at 60-90 megawatts per building, which is more than the power used by 15,000 households at peak demand. The widespread integration of AI may drive the power consumption up even higher. 

We recently learned from a filing made by Dominion in review of their Integrated Resource Plan (their forecast and plan for meeting load demand over the next 15 years), that the utility has already signed agreements with data centers to provide over 13 gigawatts of additional power by 2038. This enormous increase is nearly eight times what’s generated by Dominion’s largest facility, the dual nuclear reactors at North Anna in Louisa County. These transmission line proposals are tied to meeting that demand but they.do not include all of the new data center campuses that have been approved over the last year. 

On September 5, 2023, PJM Transmission Expansion Advisory Committee (TEAC) posted a list of 72 project proposals as part of the PJM data center load planning initiative. PEC has reviewed those proposals and digitized many of the paths to include on this map so that people can see what’s being considered and the communities and resources that might be impacted. 

The PJM TEAC requested proposals for transmission expansion projects to help address modeled “overload violations on the grid” caused by currently operating data centers and to meet immediate load requests for electric service through the planning period (2022-2027). Although not all of these proposals will likely move forward through this “2022 RTEP Window 3” period, it is likely that we will see those not selected return in the next 2023 RTEP Windows. 

As a result of the massive data center boom occurring in Virginia, we believe this is only the beginning of the massive transmission line proposals we are likely to see over the next few years.

Learn more at pecva.org/datacenters →

Special thanks:

This WebMap was created by PEC’s Watsun Randolph with assistance from PEC’s Director of Land Use Julie Bolthouse. Questions? Contact Watsun and Julie at wrandolph@pecva.org and jbolthouse@pecva.org.

PEC Presentation on Data Centers & Virginia’s Clean Energy Future

PEC Presentation on Data Centers & Virginia’s Clean Energy Future

On June 10, 2023, The Piedmont Environmental Council hosted our annual meeting in Loudoun County and featured a workshop on data centers and Virginia’s clean energy future. The presentation, given by PEC’s Senior Energy and Climate Policy Analyst Ashish Kapoor and Director of Land Use Julie Bolthouse, is available to view and download below.

PEC Presentation on Data Centers & Potential Reliance on Backup Diesel Generators

PEC Presentation on Data Centers & Potential Reliance on Backup Diesel Generators

On March 28, 2023, The Piedmont Environmental Council hosted a local information session in Loudoun County about a variance being proposed by The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality to allow Loudoun data centers to use their backup diesel generators more frequently during the coming summer.

Data Centers, Diesel Generators and Air Quality – PEC Web Map

Data Centers, Diesel Generators and Air Quality – PEC Web Map

PEC requested the air permits for all of the approximately hundred data center facilities covered under the proposed DEQ variance, including the number of commercial generators per facility. We determined that there are 4,632 commercial diesel generators in total and that these generators have a total capacity of 11.1 gigawatts of power. Our web map displays the data centers locations, as well as nearby schools, nursing homes and low income communities.

Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William Air Quality in Jeopardy

Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William Air Quality in Jeopardy

The VA Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is seeking comment on an order that will temporarily allow data centers in Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William counties to operate their generators for longer and more frequent periods of time due to projected grid instability issues during peak summer energy usage.