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NTT Data Builds One of Its Largest US Data Center Campuses in Northern Virginia Amid Local Backlash

July 15, 2026 at 20:01 EDT

Infra & Chips
Policy & Regulation

NTT Global Data Centers is constructing a sprawling data center campus in Prince William County, Virginia, part of a building boom that has turned the region into the world's densest hub for internet infrastructure—and a growing source of friction with residents over land use, power demand and historic preservation.

Prince William County, Virginia · NTT Global Data Centers

The World's Data Center Capital Keeps Growing — and So Does the Backlash

A quarter-mile-long hall now rises along Interstate 66 as NTT builds one of its largest U.S. campuses. In Northern Virginia, the AI-driven boom is colliding with residents over power, water and historic burial grounds.

~100

acres acquired in Gainesville (June 2022)

336 MW

planned campus capacity across up to 4 halls

665+

data center facilities across Virginia

A single hall — the scale

~400 m

long (a quarter mile)

~55 m

wide (180 ft)

~23 m

tall (75 ft)

Data center peak power demand — Dominion Energy projection

Roughly a 5× jump in 16 years.

~2.7 GW

2022

13.3 GW

2038 (projected)

≈5×

the peak demand level seen in 2022 — driving disputes over transmission lines and who pays for grid upgrades.

Virginia's data centers already consume ~24 TWh a year — about a quarter of the entire state's electricity.

Supporters say

Jobs and tax revenue for the county
NTT's global footprint exceeds 2,000 MW of IT load
New capacity keeps the region the world's infrastructure hub

Critics say

Massive halls loom over historic cemeteries
Strain on power and water is outpacing local planning
Noise and irreversible loss of rural landscapes

The resistance is spreading

Communities are pushing back as each new campus arrives.

~2,000 acres

data center proposal rejected by Prince William County (July 2026)

Stafford Co.

projects delayed or shelved over cemetery objections

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