Missouri Data Center Power Demand Set to Explode 20-Fold Amid Grid and Tax Battles

Missouri's planned data centers would draw more than 20 times the power of the active sites running by the end of this year. The state is projected to grow from 11 data centers using 340 megawatts to 50 planned facilities pushing capacity past 7,400 megawatts. Google is developing Project Mica in the Northland region, which could draw up to 500 megawatts of power alone. Nebius recently broke ground on a campus that will eventually run on its own natural gas plant at the retired Blue Valley site after a judge blocked local residents from forcing a vote. Analysts at Sightline Climate warn that as many as half of the data centers slated to open worldwide this year could be delayed, with 45 local projects already canceled.