Point Pleasant data center: 3 buildings, nearly 1,000 natural gas, diesel engines

Monarch Cloud Campus LLC, owned by international data center developer Nscale, has submitted a construction permit application to the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection for its proposed data center near Point Pleasant, Mason County. The initial phase of the Monarch Compute Campus, planned for W.Va. 62, will operate as a 2.16-gigawatt natural gas-fired off-grid facility, utilizing 864 reciprocating internal combustion engines. An additional 120 engines, primarily diesel-fueled, will be used for emergency power, fire water pumping, and heating. The DEP is currently reviewing the application, while local opponents are reportedly preparing their next steps against the project.