Blackstone-owned data centre operator QTS has canceled plans for a large-scale data centre campus in Virginia following growing local opposition. The project, known as Prince William Digital Gateway, faced protests and legal challenges from activists concerned about the development’s proximity to a historic Civil War battlefield in Prince William County.
QTS stated that the initiative underwent extensive planning, analysis, and public review processes and emphasized that the campus would have brought substantial infrastructure investment to the region. However, community resistance ultimately led the company to terminate the project.
Local activists welcomed the decision, with Elena Schlossberg of the Coalition to Protect Prince William County describing the outcome as a significant victory for the community. The cancellation highlights increasing tensions surrounding data centre expansion across the United States, especially in rural areas targeted for new sites.
The data centre industry has experienced rapid growth fueled by rising demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence services. Major technology companies including Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta are collectively investing over $400 billion in data centre construction nationwide this year. Despite this surge, opposition to these facilities has intensified in several localities.
High-profile political figures such as Senator Bernie Sanders have called for moratoriums on new data centre projects, reflecting broader concerns about environmental impacts, strain on local resources, and preservation of historic sites. Grassroots organizations like Stop Project Sail in Atlanta have similarly mobilized against proposed developments in their regions.
Virginia, a key hub within the so-called “data centre alley,” recently implemented a novel electricity tax of $0.011 per kilowatt-hour on power consumed by data centres, regardless of whether the power is sourced from the grid or generated on site. The tax includes a provision to refund revenues exceeding $600 million annually. This measure complements the state’s existing sales tax exemption for data centre operators but signals growing regulatory scrutiny amid increasing public resistance.
Polling data underscore this shift in sentiment. A May survey by Gallup found that 71 percent of Americans oppose data centre construction in their communities. Industry leaders and policymakers have acknowledged the disconnect between rapid expansion and community acceptance. Calvin Butler, CEO of Exelon, the largest US utility by customer count, remarked that hyperscale operators were “caught flat-footed” by the backlash.
Efforts to balance technological infrastructure growth with local concerns continue to shape the landscape for data centre development. Blackstone declined to provide further comment on its decision to abandon the Prince William Digital Gateway project.