PIKETON, Ohio – On Friday, the U.S. Department of Energy revealed an exciting new public-private initiative to develop a large-scale data center with a dedicated power source at the site of a former uranium enrichment facility in southern Ohio. This project is part of a broader effort to foster the growth of artificial intelligence technology.
The site, formerly known as the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Pike County, is being transformed into what will now be called the “PORTS Technology Campus.” The plan includes a massive 10-gigawatt data center and up to 10 gigawatts of new power generation capabilities, with 9.2 gigawatts sourced from natural gas, as detailed by the Department of Energy.
Last year, the Portsmouth site was one of 16 federal locations identified by the department as potential hubs for companies seeking to expand their data management and storage operations.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump urged technology firms at a White House meeting to invest in their own power generation to support their energy-intensive operations. The Ohio initiative will feature both on-site and grid-connected power, alongside multi-billion-dollar investments in transmission enhancements, according to officials.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum joined the announcement in Piketon. They were accompanied by representatives from SoftBank Group, a Japanese investment firm, and its subsidiary SB Energy.
The Department of Energy announced that SoftBank, through SB Energy, is collaborating with AEP Ohio to develop the necessary power generation and transmission infrastructure. This includes a significant $4.2 billion investment in grid enhancements and new transmission lines, which the companies assert will not lead to increased rates for customers.
DOE said the project is part of the U.S.-Japan Strategic Trade and Investment Agreement announced by Trump last year. The department said the initiative includes $33.3 billion in Japanese funding tied to the natural gas generation component.
In a statement, Wright said the project would “add power generation, create jobs, and ensure the United States wins the AI race,” while Lutnick described it as part of a broader effort to “reindustrialize the country” through large-scale energy and infrastructure projects.
The visit comes days after a group of rural Ohio residents filed a petition to put a constitutional ban on mega data centers on the statewide ballot — joining a growing chorus of opponents concerned about the environmental, financial and societal costs of AI.
Ohio ranks fifth in the nation for data centers, with about 200 sites, according to the Office of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel, which represents utility customers. That includes projects by Google, Amazon Web Services and Meta.
SoftBank is collaborating with OpenAI and Oracle on Stargate, an artificial intelligence infrastructure initiative aimed at building out large-scale U.S. data center capacity to support AI, with a potential $500 billion in investment. Last fall, the three companies said a site in the Midwest would be part of their partnership.
DOE said construction on the Portsmouth project is expected to begin this year and that it will create thousands of jobs while supporting research in areas such as fusion energy, quantum computing and national security applications. Officials also said excess power capacity generated at the site would be fed back into the grid to help lower electricity costs in the region.
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Carr Smyth reported from Columbus. AP journalist Leah Willingham contributed from Boston. The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.
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