Data centers in Oregon
Oregon’s data centers want a lot more electricity. Who’s going to pay? It could be you
Oregon has emerged as one of the data center industry’s hottest markets, with the tech industry’s marquee names establishing a big footprint in small communities from Hermiston to Hillsboro. Lured by tax breaks worth nearly $200 million a year, data centers are providing a big economic boost to small communities. But they’re also straining Oregon’s power and water resources while providing relatively few jobs and upending the state’s fight against climate change.
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Oregon regulators uphold approval for controversial transmission line that may serve a single data center rather than the public
The 300-mile B2H transmission project was approved to benefit hundreds of thousands of Oregon residents but will now likely only serve a data center.
Officials at the heart of Oregon’s data center scandal had a tangle of conflicting roles
Newly disclosed records show the insiders who bought a local fiber-optic provider rebuffed an outside review and chose the people who voted on their deal.
Oregon data center defendants admit they didn’t tell state Amazon was a customer
The insiders who bought a fiber-optic provider in Morrow County withheld information about their dealings with Amazon from state authorities.
Defendants in Oregon data center case say state waited too long to object to insider deal
The state says insiders bought a telecom business for millions less than it it was worth. Defendants say the time to object was years ago.
New solar farm will power more of Amazon’s Oregon data centers
Power demand from Oregon data centers is still growing much faster than the region's supply of renewable energy.
How much water do your AI chats consume? Do the math (commentary)
AI consumes water used to cool data center’s servers and at the power plants generating the electricity to run them.
Small Oregon county reckons with fallout from data center scandal
“People just didn’t want to hear it, didn’t want to see it, didn’t believe it."
‘It blocks out the sky’: Data center’s big plans rile neighbors in small-town Forest Grove
"A 75-foot building? I feel you,” the mayor said. But she said her hands were tied because of zoning rules from 1980.
Oregon DOJ says public officials exploited nonprofit to cash in on Amazon data centers, reap millions for themselves
“You have people in this situation who knew that this company was undervalued and sold it to themselves and misled folks for personal gain."
Oregon lawmakers pass bill to ensure data centers cover their own energy costs
Gov. Tina Kotek has said she will sign the bill.
Oregon lawmaker weighed in on data center, fertilizer bills without disclosing family link
Current law doesn't require Rep. Bobby Levy, R-Echo, to disclose that her family business has ties to the industries.
Outages spike on Elon Musk’s X after fire at Oregon data center
The social media site X operates in an adjoining facility.
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