Lowndes County Commission Approves $2.4 Billion Tax Abatement for Proposed Data Center
The Lowndes County Commission approved a 20-year tax abatement worth an estimated $2.4 billion for Cloverleaf Infrastructure’s proposed Project Red Clay data center in a 3-2 vote without public notice or comment. Residents and environmental groups oppose the project, citing transparency concerns and potential demands for up to 100,000 gallons of water per day and 1.5 gigawatts of electricity.
The Lowndes County Commission approved a 20-year tax abatement for Cloverleaf Infrastructure’s proposed 800-acre Project Red Clay hyperscale data center near Burkville in a 3-2 vote. The action, which was taken without the public notice and comment period that had been expected for a later special meeting, represents an estimated $2.4 billion tax break. Construction could begin in early 2027, and the developer projects $124 million in annual local and state tax revenue.
Residents, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Southern Environmental Law Center and the Alabama Rivers Alliance criticized the vote and alleged that county officials bypassed open-meeting and public-records requirements. Opponents also raised concerns about the project’s potential consumption of up to 100,000 gallons of water per day, demand for 1.5 gigawatts of power and undisclosed wastewater treatment plans in a county facing a longstanding sanitation crisis. Cloverleaf has not disclosed the facility’s end user; the Houston-based company is seeking to develop a campus roughly four times the size of Meta’s nearby facility in Hope Hull.