Engineer testifies on Starpointe data center power generation
Hanover Township residents attended a hearing to learn more about a proposed data center campus in Starpointe Business Park, which includes an on-site natural gas power plant. Prime Data Centers LLC is seeking a conditional use permit, and an engineer testified on the power plant's design and features. The State Department of Environmental Protection is also reviewing an air quality permit for the plant.
Residents of Hanover Township gathered for a Monday night hearing to receive additional information regarding a proposed data center campus slated for Starpointe Business Park. The development, spearheaded by Dallas, Texas-based Prime Data Centers LLC, includes a significant on-site natural gas power plant.
The conditional use permit application for the project has been under review by two of the three township supervisors since early summer, with proceedings experiencing delays. Hanover Township Solicitor Dennis Makel has scheduled additional meetings through September and potentially October to expedite the process, and exhibits from the hearing will be made available online for public review.
John Coleman, Project Executive with Concord Engineering Group, testified on the specifics of the 350-450 megawatt natural gas power plant. Concord, contracted through San Francisco-based Prime partner Generate Capital, is designing the plant, which will utilize 105 Jenbacher J620 engines. Coleman detailed the engines' reliability, maintenance requirements, cooling system, and integrated sound-dampening features designed to regulate perceptible noise at the property line.
The plant's ground floor will also house a battery system for grid management and load smoothing for the seven-building, 1.8 million square foot data center campus. Coleman also noted that the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is currently reviewing an air quality permit application for the power plant, though he could not elaborate on that aspect.