Former Pennsylvania Coal Plant Site Sold for $14.3M to Make Way for AI-Ready Data Center
December 9, 2025
A significant industrial transformation is underway in Pennsylvania as the push for digital infrastructure capitalizes on the strategic advantages of former power generation sites. The trend of repurposing decommissioned power plants for data centers is accelerating, driven by the need for large land parcels, robust power access, and sustainable redevelopment, particularly to support the explosive growth of artificial intelligence and high-performance computing.
A development group, Allegheny DC Property Co. LLC, has acquired the 47.2-acre site of the former Cheswick Generating Station in Springdale, Pennsylvania, for $14.3 million, according to county land records. The transaction, which closed on November 19, involved the purchase from Cheswick Plant Environmental Redevelopment, an entity owned by Charah Environmental Solutions. The 565-megawatt coal-fired plant was retired in 2022, and Charah has been conducting demolition and environmental remediation on the property since March of this year.
Plans for the site envision a major data center campus designed for high-density workloads. The development is slated to include a 565,000-square-foot data center building and a separate 200,000-square-foot utility structure. The facility is engineered to support an IT load of up to 180 megawatts, with additional capacity allocated for critical cooling and mechanical systems. The Springdale planning commission has granted conditional use approval, with the borough council scheduled for a final vote on December 16.
If approved, the project timeline calls for design and engineering work over the next six to nine months, with permitting expected by the third quarter of 2026. Construction is projected to commence in 2027, targeting an operational date in 2028. The purchase agreement addresses remaining site challenges, including provisions for residual mercury contamination, stormwater management from surrounding hillsides, and the protection of a historic cemetery on the property. Power for the future facility is expected to be supplied via the regional grid, with developers conducting interconnection studies with utilities FirstEnergy and Duquesne Light.
This project underscores a broader industry shift where legacy energy infrastructure is being converted to fuel the next generation of computing. The redevelopment not only brings new investment and tax revenue to the region but also represents a tangible example of the circular economy in action, turning a brownfield site into a critical asset for the digital age. Its focus on AI readiness highlights the intense demand for power-dense computing environments located near major population and economic hubs.
Source: datacenterdynamics
Former Pennsylvania Coal Plant Site Sold for $14.3M to Make Way for AI-Ready Data Center
