The Trump administration is accelerating its push to build data centers on federally controlled land — allowing developers and utility companies to sidestep permitting battles and community backlash.
The Energy Department announced Wednesday it is partnering with NextEra Energy, Brookfield and three utilities to build an “artificial intelligence and high-performance computing innovation campus” on portions of DOE’s Paducah Site in western Kentucky, which was built in the 1950s to enrich uranium.
The plans include 2 gigawatts of new natural gas-fired power generation and more than 2½ gigawatts of battery storage. That’s more power than the data center is expected to need, which would allow the generators to deliver power to nearby homes and businesses, according to DOE.
Building data centers on federal sites has been a main goal of the Trump administration’s push to accelerate the pace of AI development. Last year, DOE offered up sites in Idaho, South Carolina, Tennessee and Kentucky for data center developers.
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Another project on federal land, a combination of gas generators and a 10-gigawatt data center, was announced in southern Ohio this year. Federal officials are leasing land to SB Energy for that project, which DOE is branding as the world’s largest AI data center.
Energy officials say data centers can be constructed more quickly on federal sites, using fast-tracked permitting processes.
Building a data center on an existing DOE site comes with other advantages, too. Many of them are already set up with costly transmission infrastructure, previously used for Cold War-era nuclear enrichment facilities, to support national laboratories or for other energy-intensive programs.
Developers will also probably face fewer environmental hurdles, because many of these sites — especially those still undergoing nuclear cleanup — are already experiencing environmental degradation.
Those sites allow data center developers to avoid the major stumbling blocks that many other recent projects have faced: fierce local opposition and zoning and permitting issues.
The administration is attempting to help private companies build data centers on public lands as well, but facing bigger roadblocks. Developers must obtain a right-of-way on public lands, a process that involves additional evaluations and obligations to prevent environmental harm. The more complicated process means more chances for outside groups to stop the efforts: A plan to build a center on federal lands in Nevada is currently facing legal pushback from national environmental groups and local residents.
Michigan Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib has introduced a bill to ban AI data centers on all lands owned or managed by the federal government, citing the concerns of pollution and increased energy costs.
Rep. Andy Barr (R-Kentucky) called the new project in his state “historic” and said he personally advocated for the development.
“Together with our private sector partners, this investment will create jobs, strengthen our energy security, and deliver lasting economic growth for Paducah and the Commonwealth for decades to come,” he said.
The development will involve more than $100 billion in private investment, federal officials said, and create 8,000 construction jobs and 600 permanent jobs.
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