Ohio Data Centers And Who Owns Them

Large, mostly windowless buildings are appearing on development plans across Ohio. Inside them are thousands of computers that store information, run websites, process business records and increasingly power artificial-intelligence systems.

Commercial project tracking currently identifies more than 100 planned data-center facilities in Ohio, although exact totals vary because one campus may contain several separately counted buildings and some proposals may never be completed. One tracker lists 115 planned facilities, in addition to 65 already operating.

The rapid growth has created jobs, construction spending and new tax revenue. It has also raised questions about water consumption, electric rates, environmental risks and foreign ownership.

Understanding those concerns begins with what a data center actually does.

Why data centers require so much cooling

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Nearly all the electricity used by computer servers eventually becomes heat. A small office server can be cooled with ordinary air conditioning. A building containing thousands of powerful servers produces heat continuously and must remove it around the clock.

There are several ways to accomplish this.

Some facilities primarily use air-conditioning equipment and large fans. Others circulate liquid through cooling equipment or directly past high-powered computer components. The heat must then be released outside the building.

The most important difference for the public is whether the system consumes water or recirculates it.

A closed-loop system repeatedly circulates coolant through pipes and heat exchangers. The same liquid can be reused rather than continually discharged. However, even a closed internal loop must eventually release its collected heat somewhere. That can be done through dry outdoor radiators, mechanical refrigeration or water-consuming cooling towers.

Cooling towers work by allowing some water to evaporate. Evaporation carries heat away efficiently, but the evaporated water must continually be replaced. Additional water may also be drained to prevent minerals and treatment chemicals from becoming too concentrated.

This is why two data centers of similar size can have very different effects on the local water supply. One may use dry cooling and consume relatively little water. Another may use evaporation and require a substantial continuous supply.

Why developers may choose water-intensive cooling

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Ohio law does not generally force a data center to use cooling towers or consume large quantities of water. The cooling design is usually a business and engineering decision.

Water-based evaporative cooling can be attractive because it often removes heat with less electricity than fully dry cooling, especially during hot weather. Dry systems can greatly reduce water consumption, but they may require larger equipment, consume more power and become less efficient as outside temperatures rise.

That creates a basic tradeoff:

Wet cooling may save electricity but consume more water. Dry cooling may save water but require more electricity.

Hybrid systems can operate dry during cooler weather and use water only when temperatures become high. Reclaimed wastewater can also sometimes replace treated drinking water. Those choices depend on cost, climate, available infrastructure and the type of computing equipment being installed.

Water discharge and environmental risk

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Water withdrawn by a data center does not always remain clean enough to return directly to a river or stream.

Cooling water can contain concentrated minerals, corrosion-control chemicals, scale inhibitors, biocides and other treatment products. Water drained from a cooling tower is commonly called blowdown.

Ohio EPA regulates facilities that discharge wastewater or stormwater into state waters. The agency has developed a general-permit process for data-center operations that discharge cooling water, boiler water, condensate or certain other wastewater.

A permit does not mean a facility may release anything it chooses. It can establish discharge limits, monitoring requirements and conditions governing chemical use.

However, the possibility of direct discharge concerns residents because the cumulative effect could grow as more facilities are built. A discharge that is manageable from one building may become more significant when several large campuses draw from and release water into the same watershed.

The most useful questions for a proposed project are therefore:

How much water will it withdraw on an average day and on the hottest day of the year? How much will evaporate? How much will be returned? What chemicals will be used? Where will wastewater go? Will drinking water or reclaimed water supply the cooling system?

The effect on Ohio’s electric grid

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Water is only one part of the issue. Data centers can also be among the largest electrical customers in a community. Their demand is measured in megawatts. A one-megawatt facility is relatively small. A major individual building may require tens or hundreds of megawatts. A large artificial-intelligence campus may eventually request several hundred megawatts or more.

Unlike homes, where demand rises and falls throughout the day, data centers may operate near a high level 24 hours a day. That means the utility must supply not only a large amount of electricity but dependable electricity at nearly all times.

A 100-megawatt data center operating continuously would use roughly as much electricity over a year as tens of thousands of average Ohio homes. A multi-building campus requesting 500 megawatts can require electricity on the scale of a substantial power plant.

The effect depends heavily on location. A smaller center built near a strong transmission corridor may be easier to serve than an equally sized project at the end of a lightly developed rural system.

Large projects may require:

• New substations

• Larger transformers

• New or rebuilt transmission lines

• Additional power generation

• Multiple redundant utility connections

• Long-term grid planning across several counties

AEP Ohio reported in February 2026 that data-center developers had signed binding contracts for 5,642 megawatts of electric capacity in its service territory. That amount does not mean every facility will immediately consume its full contracted capacity. Projects are constructed in phases, and some may be delayed or reduced. It nevertheless shows the enormous scale of the requests utilities are receiving.

Could data centers raise household electric rates?

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They could, but the answer depends on who pays for the infrastructure required to serve them.

A large new customer can benefit a utility system by purchasing enormous quantities of electricity and contributing revenue. The risk arises when the utility must build expensive lines, transformers and substations based on promised demand that never fully appears.

For example, a developer might request enough power for a 500-megawatt campus. The utility could spend heavily to prepare for it. If the company later builds only a fraction of the project or abandons it, other customers could be left paying for infrastructure that is no longer needed.

To address that danger, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio approved a special AEP Ohio data-center tariff. It generally requires qualifying large data centers to pay for at least 85 percent of their contracted electric capacity for up to 12 years, even when they use less. The purpose is to reduce the chance that ordinary customers will bear the cost of infrastructure built for speculative projects.

That protection is important, but it does not eliminate every possible effect on electricity prices.

Data centers can increase regional demand for generation. When demand grows faster than power plants and transmission systems can be built, wholesale electricity prices can rise. Older plants may remain open longer, new natural-gas plants may be needed and utilities may compete for limited transformers and construction materials.

Residents may therefore be affected through both local infrastructure costs and broader regional electricity-market prices.

The Orchard View project and foreign ownership

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Foreign ownership has become another point of discussion in Stark County.

The proposed data center near Trump Avenue SE and Orchard View Drive SE is connected to DAMAC Digital, which is part of the Dubai-based DAMAC business group. DAMAC Digital describes itself as an international developer and operator of data-center infrastructure.

Foreign ownership of commercial property or a data center in Ohio is not automatically illegal.

Ohio law requires certain foreign individuals and foreign-owned business entities to disclose qualifying real-estate acquisitions to the Ohio secretary of state. The requirement generally applies when the property exceeds three acres or has a market value above $100,000 and specified foreign-ownership thresholds are met. The filing includes information about the property, intended use and foreign ownership.

At the federal level, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, known as CFIUS, may review certain foreign investments and real-estate transactions for national-security concerns. Its authority can involve critical infrastructure, sensitive technology, personal data and property near designated military or government locations.

Foreign ownership does not automatically mean the owner can read all information stored in the building. Data centers often separate the owner of the property, the operator of the facility and the customers that own or lease the computer equipment. Still, ownership and operation create reasonable questions about physical access, cybersecurity, future customers and who ultimately controls critical equipment.

For the Stark County proposal, residents and officials may reasonably ask:

Who will operate the facility? Will DAMAC own the computer servers or lease secured space to other companies? Will any government, health, financial or other sensitive information be stored there? Will foreign personnel have physical or remote access? Was the transaction reviewed by federal authorities? Must local officials be notified if ownership is later transferred?

Those questions do not presume wrongdoing. They are part of understanding who will control a large piece of local infrastructure.

What communities should demand before approval

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The main problem is not necessarily that data centers exist. Modern banking, communications, health care, business and government all rely on them.

The concern is whether communities are receiving enough information before approving projects that may operate for decades.

Before granting zoning changes, utility agreements, tax incentives or development assistance, local governments should seek clear answers about:

• Maximum electric demand

• Average and peak water consumption

• Cooling technology

• Wastewater discharge

• Backup-generator emissions

• Noise

• Infrastructure costs

• Ownership and operating control

• Financial guarantees if the project is canceled

• Plans for expansion or eventual closure

Ohio’s data center boom may bring meaningful investment. It may also place long-term pressure on water systems, the electric grid and local infrastructure.

The public debate should not be reduced to whether someone supports or opposes technology. It certainly seems to be coming one way or another. The more important question is whether companies seeking enormous amounts of power, water and land are being required to explain their plans clearly and whether taxpayers and utility customers will bear the burden alone.