By state
Data centers in Pennsylvania
14 data centers and projects on our map in Pennsylvania, including 8 projects we track in detail. Each one links to its source. Below: where they are by county, the projects in the news, and the latest reporting from both sides.
Latest news from Pennsylvania
The 20 most recent of 22 items. All daily updates.
Supports the case against news October 11, 2026
NorthPoint Development has offered Hazle Township residents an individual payment of up to $10,000 in exchange for support of a 1,300 acre, $165 million campus of 15 data center buildings and a substation. Residents in nearby Sugarloaf Township are facing eminent domain notices for a high voltage line that would feed the project. Local Republicans and Democrats are organizing together against the project in the lead up to the Pennsylvania gubernatorial election.
Check it: Payment offers are from the developer and are not yet accepted; the project still needs permits under Pennsylvania's new GRID executive order.
Cited by both sides local October 8, 2026
The Luzerne County planning commission voted to send a revised data center zoning ordinance to County Council for adoption. The revised draft lowers the required setback from sensitive receptors to 1,250 feet, with a possible reduction to 1,000 feet if the applicant exceeds environmental standards. Noise limits were loosened from the original draft to 55 decibels A weighted and 65 decibels C weighted at the property line.
Check it: The ordinance only covers 19 small municipalities that use county zoning; neighboring towns set their own rules.
Supports the case for policy October 6, 2026
The Pennsylvania House Consumer Protection, Technology and Utilities Committee passed HB2828 unanimously, with sponsors signaling the final language will be amended before a floor vote. The bill would require data center developers to apply for electric service and pay the associated infrastructure fees before seeking zoning approval, and would push utilities toward a model rate class that assigns new build costs to large customers. The panel also advanced a separate bill addressing utility profits.
Check it: A committee vote is not law. The language is still being revised, and the full House and the Senate have to pass it before anyone's bill is protected.
Supports the case for company October 6, 2026
Amazon Web Services submitted a preliminary land development plan for a 36 building data center campus on 1,100 acres across Center and Blacklick Townships, next to the planned 4.5 GW gas plant at the Homer City Energy Campus. Construction would proceed in four phases starting in December 2026 with full completion by 2036. AWS projects 1,500 to 2,000 operations jobs at salaries of about $80,000 to $100,000.
Check it: The campus is tied to a new gas plant, not to the existing PJM grid. Check how its emissions and water use will be permitted and whether Pennsylvania's new large load tariff rules will apply.
Supports the case against policy October 2, 2026
The Senate Communications and Technology Committee unanimously approved Senate Bill 1408 banning future nondisclosure agreements between data center developers, local governments and state agencies, and the House Energy Committee unanimously approved House Bill 2775 requiring grid interconnection applications and fees before local zoning review, along with House Bill 2828 requiring data centers to bear the costs of any new generation, transmission and other grid upgrades. The bills still need floor votes and Senate action.
Check it: Committee approval is only the first step; readers should check whether each bill passes the full chamber and is signed.
Supports the case against policy October 1, 2026
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission voted to issue a tentative order that would require new large loads which have not secured enough new generation to be curtailed before other customers during grid emergencies, and would bar utilities from classifying those loads as critical. The order cites a commissioned study projecting that the regional grid would fail to meet PJM reliability standards from 2027 through 2030 under its reference scenario, and opens a public comment window.
Check it: The order is tentative, not final, and does not take effect until comments are reviewed and a final order is issued.
Cited by both sides policy October 1, 2026
The Pennsylvania House Energy Committee passed HB 2775, requiring data center developers to secure electricity service and pay fees before seeking zoning, and HB 2828, requiring developers to pay infrastructure costs and reduce load during blackouts, both unanimously. The panel also moved HB 2755 on regional transmission organization participation 22 to 3. Sponsors include Reps. Kyle Donahue, Elizabeth Fiedler and Chris Pielli.
Check it: Check whether the full House and Senate take up the bills in the remaining voting days of the session, since committee passage is not law.
Supports the case for local October 1, 2026
Supervisors in Kline Township, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania voted unanimously on October 1 to approve Amazon Web Services' proposed 350 acre campus near Route 309 and Interstate 81, with roughly two million square feet of data center space planned. Approved conditions include pre and post blasting structural surveys of nearby homes and post construction acoustic testing. Residents in attendance urged stricter zoning and environmental safeguards before granting approval, citing concerns about noise, blasting, water use and strain on local utilities.
Check it: Amazon still must obtain state environmental permits and township zoning sign offs before building, so this approval is a milestone rather than a final clearance.
Supports the case against local September 30, 2026
East Buffalo Township supervisors in Union County, Pennsylvania announced on September 30 that they will hold a public hearing on October 12 on an ordinance that would restrict data centers to the township's industrial zoning district. The hearing precedes a formal vote.
Check it: The ordinance would not take effect until approved by supervisors after the hearing, and the restriction is to industrial zoning, not an outright ban.
Cited by both sides news September 28, 2026
The magazine describes a growing tactic of developers writing checks directly to nearby residents, focusing on NorthPoint Development's letter to about 4,500 Hazle Township, Pa. households offering $10,000 each in exchange for support for a 15-building, 1,300-acre data center campus. Many residents interviewed said no anyway, citing noise, property values and distrust.
Check it: The $45 million total is contingent on project approval; the article is opinion-adjacent but the underlying NorthPoint offer is documented.
Supports the case against local September 26, 2026
Palmerton Borough Council discussed a 13-building data center campus and possible on-site power generation building proposed by DTA Alliance LLC and Murphy's Meadow LLC on about 700 acres in neighboring Lower Towamensing Township, including the former Blue Shamrock Golf Course, with council members raising concerns about water supply, noise, and property values. Lower Towamensing Township has retained special counsel to defend against a curative amendment filed by the property owners, and a public hearing on that challenge is set for October 27.
Check it: A curative amendment is a legal challenge to a township's zoning; the outcome of the October 27 hearing determines whether the proposal can proceed.
Cited by both sides policy September 25, 2026
The East Whiteland Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve a 32 page zoning ordinance setting distance limits from homes, schools, daycares, parks and churches, plus rules on noise, water use, cooling and power. The ordinance does not affect the roughly 1.5 million square foot data center already being built at the former Cyprus Foote Mineral property.
Check it: The ordinance is prospective only, so residents most concerned about the existing project will not see its provisions applied there.
Supports the case against local September 23, 2026
The Reading Planning Commission scheduled a special voting meeting in October to advance a proposed zoning amendment restricting data centers to Heavy Manufacturing and Manufacturing Commercial districts through a conditional use hearing. The city council invoked the curative amendment process in July after finding the zoning ordinance defective as to data centers, with a January deadline for final adoption.
Check it: Whether the planning commission advances the exact text to city council within the 180 day curative window.
Supports the case against report September 22, 2026
TechCrunch summarizes a Data and Society report based on 18 months of ethnographic fieldwork and 44 interviews with Pennsylvania residents, which finds that opposition draws from industrial history, distrust of NDAs, property values and utility bill concerns rather than any single objection. Researchers argue Pennsylvania's coal, steel and fracking legacy shapes how residents evaluate new data center promises.
Check it: The study is qualitative, not a statistical survey. Its 44 interviews cannot be read as representative of all Pennsylvanians.
Supports the case against policy September 19, 2026
At its September public meeting the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission unanimously created a Ratemaking Working Group to examine how profit is built into rate increases, out-of-cycle rider charges and disclosure of black-box settlements. It also directed staff to revisit emergency electric load control rules as demand from large loads grows. Consumer advocates supported the moves; utilities said existing processes already provide oversight.
Check it: Check the PUC order for the working group's charter and any deadlines for staff recommendations.
Neutral company September 18, 2026
Aterio's September pipeline report says Amazon Web Services is in early discussions with the developer of the Homer City Energy Campus in Indiana County, Pennsylvania, about a data center campus tied to the site's planned 4.5 gigawatt gas plant. The report also flags a $5 billion AWS proposal for 18 buildings on 601 acres near Trenton, Ohio, where two townships rejected an annexation petition in August.
Check it: Aterio compiles from public filings and reporting, so treat the discussion as early-stage until AWS or the developer confirms a signed agreement.
Cited by both sides policy September 17, 2026
The Lycoming County Planning Commission reviewed a draft curative amendment to the county land development ordinance that would define data centers and set standards for power sourcing, water supply, permitted zones, setbacks, noise and decommissioning. County officials say the draft is needed because Pennsylvania developers can otherwise site facilities anywhere a use is not specifically prohibited. Public comment is expected to open 30 days before hearings that may begin in mid-November.
Check it: Read the draft amendment for specific setback distances and decommissioning bond requirements.
Cited by both sides policy September 17, 2026
Mayor Cherelle Parker signed an executive order forming a Philadelphia Data Center Task Force to study the potential energy, water, environmental and economic effects of hyperscale projects, with a report due June 30, 2027. Supporters call the review a first step toward guardrails, while some residents at a city hall protest called on the mayor to back a moratorium instead.
Check it: A task force is advisory. Any restrictions on future data centers would still need council legislation to take effect.
Supports the case against report September 16, 2026
In a study commissioned by the state Public Utility Commission and released this week, Synapse Energy Economics projected that under PJM's current load forecast the region falls short of its planning standard from 2027 through 2030, and under a high data center scenario new demand between 2029 and 2030 alone would exceed Pennsylvania's current annual use. PUC Chair Stephen DeFrank cited the findings in floating a model tariff for customers of 50 megawatts and above. Industry groups say the projections assume little new generation and no successful demand response.
Check it: The 13-plus outages figure is a modeled high-growth scenario, not a forecast; the baseline case is roughly 5.9 shortfall events per decade.
Supports the case against report September 15, 2026
A Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission-commissioned study by Synapse Energy Economics projected that PJM will fail to meet its own reliability planning standard from 2027 through 2030 under PJM's current load forecast, with data center demand as the main driver. In a worst case, the modeled 2030 loss-of-load expectation reaches 13.2 events per year.
Check it: The reliability numbers are modeled scenarios that assume little new supply comes online; actual outcomes depend on generation additions and demand-response through the decade.