Georgia agency orders data center’s ‘pop-up’ power plant to halt construction
The Georgia Environmental Protection Division has ordered a "pop-up" power plant being built for a data center in Covington, Georgia, to halt construction. The agency cited VoltaGrid and Serverfarm for allegedly breaching state law by constructing the power generators without required permits.
The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GEPD) has ordered VoltaGrid, a Houston-based firm, to cease construction on a "pop-up" power plant near Covington, Georgia. The plant, intended to power a data center being developed by Serverfarm, was reportedly built without the necessary permits.
GEPD officials issued notices of violations to both VoltaGrid and Serverfarm, alleging a breach of state law for commencing construction on dozens of gas engines without the required environmental approvals. This action follows a July 1 exposé by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which highlighted the companies' failure to obtain permits prior to starting work on the facility located approximately 40 miles east of downtown Atlanta.
The project's design involves VoltaGrid generating electricity on-site for the adjacent Serverfarm data center, rather than connecting to the traditional power grid.