Hays County Backs Off Data Center Pause Amid Water, Legal Concerns

Hays County has pulled back on a plan to temporarily suspend approvals for data centers and other water-intensive large-scale developments, fearing a possible lawsuit. This comes after Hill County was forced to rescind its one-year data center moratorium after being sued. More than 70 data center projects were operating or in development between Temple and San Antonio as of May, with at least seven in Hays County. Texas already has surpassed Virginia as the top data center market in the world, with the state being home to more than 250 data centers, a number that could grow to an estimated 750 within the next five years. An average 100-megawatt data center in the U.S. consumes enough water for 6,500 households each day, according to an April report from the International Energy Agency. It projects global data center water use could double by 2030. Grid operator the Electric Reliability Council of Texas has estimated energy demand will surge more than 70% by 2031, driven largely by planned data center growth.