Former Centre Foundry site in Wheeling slated for data center project
Silicon Foundation has acquired the former Centre Foundry property in Wheeling, West Virginia, with plans to redevelop it into a 100-megawatt data center and energy technology campus. Stokes Energy will serve as the prime engineering, procurement, and construction contractor for the project, which will utilize existing power infrastructure and river-based cooling potential.
Silicon Foundation has acquired the former Centre Foundry property in Wheeling, West Virginia, with plans to redevelop the 15-acre, 60,000-square-foot industrial site into a data center and energy technology campus. Stokes Energy announced it will serve as the prime engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor for the ambitious project.
The site, located along the Ohio River, boasts existing infrastructure including an energized 69-kilovolt substation, industrial zoning, natural gas access, and potential for river-based cooling. The current electrical capacity is 10 megawatts, with plans to expand to 100 megawatts through direct access to PJM Interconnection markets via American Electric Power.
The redevelopment will unfold in two major phases. Phase one, projected for completion in the fourth quarter of 2026, involves establishing a 10-megawatt modular data center system, complete with battery energy storage and backup generation. Phase two, slated for 2027, will expand the campus to 100 megawatts and incorporate manufacturing capabilities for modular computing and power systems. Stokes Energy highlighted the facility's design to participate in wholesale energy markets, leveraging automated load response capabilities.
The Centre Foundry & Machine Co., a Wheeling industrial fixture for over 180 years, closed in 2023, leading to the loss of 37 union jobs. Additional details regarding the total investment, projected employment figures, and any incentive agreements for the data center project have not yet been released.