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Nebius Highridge AI Factory (Butler Township)

Butler Township, Schuylkill County

AI cloud company Nebius bought 358 acres at Highridge from NorthPoint for $187.5 million and wants to grow the campus to about 600 acres and 1.2 gigawatts. Butler Township expanded its data center zoning for it in August 2026; land development approval is still ahead.

ContestedGrid HyperscaleGreenfieldNEPA
At a glance

The project by the numbers

StatusUnder Review
Capacity1200 MW
Site600 acres
Water (max)0.037 MGD
Capex$ 15 B
Permanent jobs, as claimed150
First announced2026-05-13
Target online2027-10

Nebius plans a 1.2-gigawatt AI campus at Highridge Business Park

The number that mattersAfter the 2-1 vote to expand the overlay, Butler Township supervisors chairman David Kessler said, "We do take people sometimes at their word. We have to." (Coal Region Canary, August 31, 2026)
Developer
Nebius Group N.V., a Nasdaq-listed AI cloud company based in Amsterdam, which says it will design, build, own and operate the campus. Public affairs director John Sutter and U.S. public affairs manager Danielle Milich have presented the plan. NorthPoint Development held the land and its DEP permits before selling the core tract to a Nebius subsidiary in April 2026; DEP's tracker still lists the project as "Highridge Data (NorthPoint Development) Project Nebius," and the stormwater permit is being transferred to Highridge data center Propco LLC. SEDCO owns the expansion parcels. Langan Engineering has represented the project on water questions.
Tenant
Nebius would be both owner and user; it told WVIA it is the developer, builder, tenant and operator and runs only its own AI cloud workloads on Nvidia GPUs. Its public customers include Meta and Microsoft, but no customer has been tied to this site.
Current stage
Zoning is in place now that Butler Township created a data center overlay in September 2025 and expanded it on August 31, 2026 (Ordinance 2026-2, 2-1 vote), and set a 65 dBA noise limit and a community benefits negotiation requirement (Ordinance 2026-3, unanimous). Nebius has not yet won land development approval from the township Planning Commission and supervisors. DEP's tracker shows the Chapter 102 stormwater permit (PAD540030) and water encroachment permit (E5402222-003) issued, an amendment to the stormwater permit pending since August 7, 2026, and water, air and storage tank permits not yet filed.
Decision body
Butler Township Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors (land development plan); Pennsylvania DEP Northeast Regional Office and the Schuylkill Conservation District (stormwater, encroachment, air and storage tank permits); Schuylkill County Commissioners on county matters.
Top issues
noise and low-frequency hum; stormwater runoff toward Gordon; private wells and water supply; electricity demand and grid costs; emergency response and fire protection; a community benefits agreement before approvals; size of the campus
Key opponents
No organized opposition group has been reported for this project. Supervisor Patrick Coyle cast the only vote against expanding the overlay on August 31, 2026, saying Nebius already had enough land, though he said he isn't against data centers. About two dozen people urged the supervisors to vote no or wait for firmer plans, and residents of neighboring Gordon have pressed for stormwater and well protections.
Key supporters
State Rep. Tim Twardzik (R-123), a SEDCO board member, who called Highridge "the right spot"; SEDCO president Frank Zukas; Butler Township supervisors David Kessler and Kate Staudenmeier, who voted for the overlay expansion; and Schuylkill County Commissioners Chairman Larry Padora, who has spoken in favor of data centers in the right location without naming this project.

How we got here

In April 2022 NorthPoint Development applied to DEP for water encroachment and stormwater permits for a Highridge Logistics Center warehouse at the site, and DEP acted on both in early 2023. In May 2025 PPL told the grid operator PJM that an unnamed customer near Frackville wanted 230 kV service for a load growing to about 600 megawatts by 2029. On September 29, 2025, Butler Township rezoned about 72 acres from woodland conservation to its Interchange district and created a data center overlay at Highridge. In April 2026 a Nebius subsidiary bought about 358 acres from NorthPoint for $187.5 million, and on May 13, 2026 Nebius announced a new Pennsylvania site with up to 1.2 gigawatts of secured power. On June 6, 2026 the Pennsylvania Bulletin listed a transfer of the stormwater permit to Highridge data center Propco LLC. On July 22, 2026 Nebius presented the 600-acre plan to the county commissioners, and it held an open house on August 6. A township hearing on August 18 ended with the ordinances tabled, and on August 31, 2026 supervisors expanded the overlay 2-1 and lowered the noise limit to 65 dBA.

What is at stake

Impacts raised and open questions

Energy costs and the grid

High

Nebius says PPL will supply up to 1.2 gigawatts under a dedicated energy service agreement, with new infrastructure built for the campus, and that Nebius pays the full cost so residential bills don't rise.

Nebius

Noise and vibration

Medium

Butler Township's limit is now 65 dBA at the property line, down from 75. Nebius's internal study estimates 60 to 63 decibels at the campus line in hot weather and 34 to 40 decibels at homes toward Gordon; residents asked for C-weighted limits to catch low-frequency hum.

Skook News

Energy costs and the grid

Medium

A May 2025 PPL filing with PJM describes a new customer near Frackville that asked for 230 kV service, with load growing from 290 megawatts in 2027 to 600 megawatts in 2029. The filing doesn't name the customer.

PJM Interconnection

Water

Medium

DEP's 2022 encroachment permit for the site covers filling 0.08 acre of wetland and a stormwater outfall to Rattling Run, and Gordon residents below the mountain fear runoff and flooding.

Pennsylvania Bulletin, 52 Pa.B. 2600

Jobs and tax claims

Medium

Nebius expects 100 to 150 permanent jobs, and project materials estimate about 1,000 construction jobs over a three-year buildout.

Skook News

Water

Low

SEDCO president Frank Zukas said the site is permitted to draw about 37,000 gallons a day from the Mount Laurel water system, which he said has 1.6 million gallons a day of capacity. Nebius says cooling is air-cooled and closed-loop.

Skook News
Timeline

How it has unfolded

  • 2022-04-30The Pennsylvania Bulletin lists NorthPoint's application to fill 0.08 acre of wetland and add a stormwater outfall to Rattling Run for a 1.2 million square foot Highridge Logistics Center building. Pennsylvania Bulletin, 52 Pa.B. 2600
  • 2023-02-04DEP issues Chapter 102 stormwater permit PAD540030 to NorthPoint Development for the Butler Township site. Pennsylvania Bulletin, 53 Pa.B. 716
  • 2025-05-06PPL tells PJM an unnamed customer near Frackville wants 230 kV service for a load of 290 megawatts in 2027 rising to 600 megawatts in 2029. PJM Interconnection
  • 2025-09-29Supervisors unanimously adopt Ordinances 2025-3 and 2025-4, rezoning about 72 acres at Highridge and creating a data center overlay and rules. Coal Region Canary
  • 2026-05-13Nebius tells shareholders it has a new Pennsylvania site with power secured for up to 1.2 gigawatts. Nebius Group N.V. via SEC EDGAR
  • 2026-06-06The Pennsylvania Bulletin lists a transfer of stormwater permit PAD540030 to Highridge data center Propco LLC. Pennsylvania Bulletin, 56 Pa.B. 3332
  • 2026-07-22Nebius presents a 600-acre, six-building plan to the Schuylkill County Commissioners. Coal Region Canary
  • 2026-08-07An amendment to stormwater permit PAD540030 is submitted to DEP and remains pending. Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
  • 2026-08-18Supervisors hold a hearing on the overlay expansion and noise limit and table both ordinances. Skook News
  • 2026-08-31Supervisors expand the data center overlay 2-1 and unanimously cut the noise limit to 65 dBA with a community benefits agreement requirement. Coal Region Canary
News

Coverage of this project

Sources

Know your rights

In Pennsylvania, the local zoning ordinance sets the route. A conditional use is decided by the elected governing body (supervisors, commissioners or council). A special exception or variance, and an appeal of a zoning officer’s decision, go to the Zoning Hearing Board. Each is a public hearing on a record: affected neighbors can ask for party status, cross-examine witnesses, and appeal. Municipalities can also adopt data center ordinances with enforceable standards.

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Take action

Organized community opposition is the single most effective check on these projects in Pennsylvania. Show up to hearings, submit comment when it is taken, support legal and expert-witness costs, and press your municipality for a real ordinance. Pennsylvania municipalities cannot simply freeze applications, but a curative amendment under the Planning Code gives them a defined window to fix a defective ordinance.

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