In a significant move that could reshape the landscape of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, PPL Corp. has secured a substantial land deal to explore the construction of massive power plants for data centers. The joint venture, involving PPL Corp. and Blackstone Infrastructure, has purchased over 11 square miles of land from local businessman Dominick DeNaples, including land adjacent to a critical public drinking water source.
The acquisition, which spans across several Lackawanna County towns, includes nearly 7,200 acres and is part of a larger plan to file for 2.25 gigawatts of natural gas power plants. The exact location of the proposed power plants remains unclear, but the timing of the land deal coincides with the memorandum to purchase land for a "west campus" in Carbondale Twp. and an "east campus" from Archbald to the Brownell Reservoir in Carbondale Twp.
The news has sparked immediate backlash from opponents of data center development, with Lackawanna County Commissioner Bill Gaughan voicing his concerns. "Our county should not be offered up as the sacrificial lamb of the AI revolution," Gaughan said. "It's absolutely disgraceful what's happening here."
Despite the controversy, PPL Corp. spokesman Ryan Hill confirmed the venture's intent to evaluate the land for power generation suitable for data centers. However, he emphasized that the acquisition of large land areas does not necessarily mean all of it will be developed. "The benefit of having large sites is that they provide that flexibility for setbacks, buffers, open space, green space, other considerations for a project such as a generation project," Hill explained.
Over the past year-and-a-half, Lackawanna County has become a focal point for speculative data center development, with around 90 proposed data centers, previously peaking at nearly 100. The county has emerged as a hot spot for such projects, encompassing thousands of acres and more than a dozen proposed initiatives.
PPL Corp.'s venture with Blackstone Infrastructure has also purchased over 500 acres in Luzerne County for $40.4 million, alongside filing for two natural gas power plants with outputs similar to those in Lackawanna County. Gaughan argues that the rush for data centers and power plants in Lackawanna County is "exploitation to a degree that we have never seen before."
The joint venture will only proceed with a power plant if they secure a signed agreement with a large customer, Hill said. The first step is to sign a long-term agreement with a data center. "Our focus is delivering reliability, affordability, and local benefits," Hill added.
There have been no decisions about future projects or how the sites could be used, according to Hill. He also declined to comment on the specific connection between the 1,500-megawatt and 750-megawatt power plants and the west or east campuses.
The power plants would contract with a large customer rather than sell to the grid to avoid market volatility, Hill explained. However, the power plants will still be connected to the electric grid, rather than operating as behind-the-meter generation. PPL Corp. is distinct from PPL Electric Utilities, and utility ratepayers will not be responsible for the developments.
At present, there are no agreements in place with any data center developers, nor have the joint venture submitted any applications to local municipalities. The proposed developments have sparked a "real reckoning" regarding the balance between economic development and exploitation in Lackawanna County, according to the Sierra Club.
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