Boone County Data Center Campus Quietly Certified in West Virginia; Lack of Public Announcement Draws Criticism
WEST VIRGINIA — West Virginia's Department of Commerce certified a large data center campus in Boone County without any public announcement, the Charleston Gazette-Mail disclosed on November 7. In a September 30 letter, the department issued a "high-impact data center" certification to Houston-based energy infrastructure developer LM Core Energy Services, responding to its August 17 application. The project, code-named "Country Road," sits on the former Hobbit mine site at 5151 Shaffer Road in Danville, covering about 3,557 acres with expected power demand of about 1.4 gigawatts; documents show long-term plans of up to 10 gigawatts and 8,000 acres. The certification lists Las Vegas AI infrastructure firm TensorWave as the expected tenant. Under House Bill 2014, championed by Governor Morrisey and passed by the legislature in March 2025, developers' letters of intent are confidential by law, so the public could not know the project existed, let alone appeal it. House minority leader assistant Kayla Young criticized the arrangement: "The public wants to appeal, but they don't even know the project exists — how can they appeal?" A Commerce spokesperson said economic development projects are confidential by law until final approval. LM Core CEO Jarrett Lewis said the company is "exploring potential development" and that it is too early to share details before they are finalized.
Source: Charleston Gazette-Mail
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：数据中心建筑外观（资料图）。Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 4.0。 / Photo: Data center exterior (file photo). Via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
