Data centers · OhioFirst pass Oct. 17, 2026 · not yet complete

10 data center projects in Ohio.

Partial first pass: reviewed the state sales-tax exemption fight, the AEP Ohio large-load tariff, Microsoft's paused Licking County sites, Google and Meta in central Ohio, and contested AWS campuses in Sidney and Wilmington plus the Mount Orab mega site. Not yet covered from opened sources (web fetches were rate-limited): the AWS central Ohio campuses (Dublin, Hilliard, New Albany), Cologix, QTS, EdgeConneX and Vantage campuses, the Ashville, Lordstown and Preble County fights, and the township moratoriums (Monroe, Muhlenberg, Pierce, Hubbard, Ravenna, Athens and others) that searches surfaced.

Approved, building or operating6Projects whose latest record is an approval, construction or operation.
Proposed or paused4Proposals, marketed sites, inquiries, and projects paused or stalled.
Withdrawn or denied0They stay on the map with their record.
Reported power, active projects1,000 MWSum of reported capacities for projects not withdrawn or denied; many projects report none, and figures are developers’ claims.

Dot positions are approximate, from the reported address or area. “None found” means our statewide review of news, trackers and county records found nothing; it is not proof none exists.

Every project

All 10 Ohio projects on record
Meta Prometheus AI data centerLickingMeta Platforms1,000Under constructionJan. 19, 202650 MW+
AWS Sidney data center campusShelbyAmazon Web Services—ApprovedOct. 5, 2026Under 50 MW
AWS Wilmington data center campusClintonAmazon Web Services—ApprovedSept. 3, 202650 MW+
Google Columbus data centerFranklinGoogle—Under constructionJune 20, 2024Under 50 MW
Google Lancaster data centerFairfieldGoogle—OperatingJune 20, 2024Under 50 MW
Google New Albany data center campusLickingGoogle—OperatingJune 20, 2024Under 50 MW
Microsoft Heath data center siteLickingMicrosoft—StalledApril 8, 202550 MW+
Microsoft Hebron data center siteLickingMicrosoft—StalledApril 8, 202550 MW+
Microsoft New Albany data centerLickingMicrosoft—StalledApril 8, 202550 MW+
Mount Orab Mega Site data center proposalBrown——ProposedSept. 16, 202650 MW+

Select a heading to sort. Operating hyperscale campuses are included for context.

Operating
Built and serving customers.
Under construction
Building permits issued or construction reported under way.
Approved
A government body has approved land use, zoning or a development agreement for data center use. Other permits may still be pending.
Proposed
An application, announcement or public proposal exists; no approval yet.
Site zoned or marketed
Land zoned or marketed for possible data center use; no project filed.
Paused by moratorium
A local moratorium or ban blocks new applications or approvals.
Stalled
No formal application, or blocked by a missing permit or utility capacity.
Inquiry only
A developer asked local officials about a site; nothing was filed.
Withdrawn
The developer withdrew its application or proposal.
Denied
A government body voted it down.

State law and rates

  • Ohio's data center sales and use tax exemption, approved project by project by the Ohio Tax Credit Authority, can waive up to all of the 5.75% state sales tax on qualifying equipment for facilities of $100 million or more for up to 15 years; the state reported it cost about $555 million in 2024 and about $1.57 billion in 2025, far above its own forecasts. (Cleveland 19 (Associated Press, from Signal Ohio), May 21, 2026; Signal Ohio, June 11, 2026)
  • Lawmakers repealed the exemption in the 2025-2027 budget, House Bill 96, but Gov. Mike DeWine vetoed that provision in 2025; House leaders later said they lacked the 60 votes to override. (WYSU (Statehouse News Bureau), Aug. 8, 2025; Signal Ohio, June 11, 2026)
  • On May 27, 2026, DeWine directed the Tax Credit Authority to stop taking new data center exemption requests after its June 1 meeting while the General Assembly's Joint Data Center Committee studies the industry; existing exemptions are unaffected. (Office of Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, May 27, 2026; ENR, May 29, 2026)
  • A legislative package from the joint committee that would have shrunk future data center tax breaks was pulled before a floor vote on June 10, 2026, the last scheduled session before the November election; no change was adopted. (Signal Ohio, June 11, 2026)
  • The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio approved AEP Ohio's data center tariff on July 9, 2025 (Case No. 24-0508): new data centers above 25 MW must pay for at least 85% of their subscribed monthly capacity for up to 12 years, including a four-year ramp, with exit fees and financial-assurance rules, and the order set a path to end AEP's March 2023 moratorium on new central Ohio data center service agreements. (POWER Magazine, July 10, 2025; Renewable Energy World, July 10, 2025)
  • A Brown County group began circulating a proposed state constitutional amendment in March 2026 that would bar construction of data centers larger than 25 MW; it had not been certified as of the source. (WKRC Local 12, March 9, 2026)

Local moratoriums and bans

None found in this review.

Updates, newest first

  1. Sept. 18, 2026 AWS Wilmington data center campus · The Supreme Court of Ohio upheld the Clinton County Board of Elections' refusal to place a citizen data center zoning initiative on the Nov. 3 ballot, finding the city could not create the private right to sue it contained. (FOX19 (WXIX), Sept. 18, 2026)
  2. Sept. 17, 2026 AWS Sidney data center campus · A $100,000 community fund tied to the project opened with the Community Foundation of Shelby County. (City of Sidney, Oct. 5, 2026)
  3. Sept. 16, 2026 Mount Orab Mega Site data center proposal · Residents filled a planning commission meeting on a revised high-tech overlay with noise, screening and application rules; no vote was taken, and earlier zoning of the site had been found improperly adopted. (FOX19 (WXIX), Sept. 16, 2026)
  4. Sept. 3, 2026 AWS Wilmington data center campus · Council passed a rezoning from rural residential to light industrial under emergency procedures, following an August noise ordinance also passed as an emergency; a resident sued over the emergency rezoning. (FOX19 (WXIX), Sept. 18, 2026)
  5. April 27, 2026 AWS Sidney data center campus · City presented the water and sewer service agreement; council later approved it and an infrastructure development agreement (Resolutions 26-26 and 27-26). (City of Sidney, Oct. 5, 2026)
  6. March 9, 2026 Mount Orab Mega Site data center proposal · A Brown County group opposed to the project announced a petition for a state constitutional amendment barring data centers above 25 MW. (WKRC Local 12, March 9, 2026)
  7. March 2026 AWS Sidney data center campus · Tree clearing and test-pit work started on the site, according to the city. (City of Sidney, Oct. 5, 2026)
  8. Feb. 19, 2026 AWS Wilmington data center campus · Council voted 5-2 to rezone four parcels of more than 545 acres from rural residential to light industrial near the site, against a regional planning commission recommendation to table. (WCPO 9, Feb. 20, 2026; WHIO, Feb. 6, 2026)
  9. Jan. 19, 2026 Meta Prometheus AI data center · WOSU reported Meta was wrapping up construction on Prometheus in New Albany in 2026. (WOSU (via WYSO), Jan. 19, 2026)
  10. Jan. 7, 2026 AWS Wilmington data center campus · Wilmington Planning Commission unanimously tabled the site plan, citing incomplete traffic, lighting and water studies. (DatacenterDynamics, Jan. 7, 2026)
  11. Dec. 4, 2025 AWS Wilmington data center campus · Council moved the tax agreement past the first of three required readings. (WCPO 9, Dec. 4, 2025)
  12. Nov. 25, 2025 AWS Wilmington data center campus · City council delayed its vote on the tax agreement to Dec. 4 after about 40 residents spoke, many urging rejection. (DatacenterDynamics, Nov. 28, 2025)
  13. Oct. 31, 2025 AWS Sidney data center campus · Sidney City Council approved the incentive agreements, including a 30-year, 100% abatement paired with $50 million in payments in lieu of taxes; a residents' watch group had formed in opposition. (DatacenterDynamics, Oct. 31, 2025; City of Sidney, Oct. 5, 2026)
  14. April 8, 2025 Microsoft New Albany data center · Microsoft said it was no longer moving forward with its roughly $1 billion plan for three Licking County campuses, including New Albany, where construction had been slated for July 2025. (DatacenterDynamics, April 8, 2025)
  15. April 8, 2025 Microsoft Heath data center site · Microsoft paused the Heath campus, which had been slated for construction in summer 2025, saying it would keep evaluating the site. (DatacenterDynamics, April 8, 2025)
  16. April 8, 2025 Microsoft Hebron data center site · Microsoft paused the Hebron campus, which had been slated for construction in 2026. (DatacenterDynamics, April 8, 2025)
  17. June 20, 2024 Google New Albany data center campus · Google announced another $2.3 billion for its three central Ohio campuses, bringing its reported Ohio total since 2019 to $4.4 billion. (DatacenterDynamics, June 20, 2024)
  18. June 20, 2024 Google Columbus data center · Reported under construction when Google announced its $2.3 billion central Ohio commitment. (DatacenterDynamics, June 20, 2024)
  19. June 20, 2024 Google Lancaster data center · Listed as an existing campus in Google's $2.3 billion central Ohio announcement. (DatacenterDynamics, June 20, 2024)

How this page is built

Each project’s status is the latest public record found in a statewide review of local news, government records, utility filings and trackers; every update links to its source, and the reporting that found it is credited. The review covers campuses of 50 MW or more, or 100 acres or more when power is not reported, plus operating hyperscale campuses for context. Map positions are approximate. A county with no project listed was not found in this review; that is not proof none exists. Political money around these projects has not yet been traced in this state.

Have a filing, agenda or record? Send it to tips@signaldata.org.

Sources