MOUNT PLEASANT – Data centers and bitcoin mines are looking to plop down roots wherever adequate electricity can be found.
Kevin Wheeler, Access Energy Cooperative President and CEO told the Henry County Board of Supervisors Thursday night, the developers of data center projects are looking for excess electrical power wherever they can find it and often have the financial backing to pay whatever the price is.
That translates to higher energy costs for locals who live and work in southeast Iowa.
The Henry County Board of Supervisors held its weekly meeting in the evening Thursday and included a public meeting to discuss next steps as data center and bitcoin mining operations begin to pop up in Iowa, and interest continues to build in southeast Iowa.
Wheeler said the “Big Five” tech companies – Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Meta (Facebook), and Apple are driving the proliferation of the industry.
“They have the cash to buy away from what providers have for their own customers,” Wheeler said.
The race to increase electrical capacity includes finding fast ways to increase production, including gas turbines, wind, and solar power.
“There already isn’t any excess capacity available in 2027,” Wheeler said.
Henry County has an ordinance governing the siting (location) and operation of commercial wind energy systems (wind turbines) and a moratorium in place halting any solar energy development.
The meeting last night was an attempt to gauge public appetite for data centers.
Several spoke to the board, urging them to enact something that will regulate the industry and keep county residents safe from hazards, including higher costs for gas, electricity and water.
“There already isn’t any excess capacity available in 2027,” Wheeler said.
Katie Byczek said the industry is coming, but there are some positives including increased access through online portals for health records. “I want that to be there, but so many of these issues will be resolved in 20 years. I want you to slow it down here,” Byczek said.
A bitcoin mine owned by AUR Middletown LLC went online recently. It is located to the east of Big River Resources ethanol plant along Highway 34.
Diana Burden urged the county board to enact something that would require a similar development to come before the board for a permit.
“They (AUR Middletown) came and snuck in, and I don’t know how they should have the right to do that,” Burden said.
AUR Middletown LLC President and CEO John Paul Baric attended a work session at the Des Moines County Board of Supervisors meeting earlier this week. During that meeting Baric said he is pursuing the development of a 25 MW AI data center in Des Moines County, pending what action the county board may take to place regulations on data center development in the county.
Wheeler said a 25 MW facility is the way in the door and that developers have their sites on larger scale centers.
Melanie Patton, one of the founding members of the Henry County Watchmen, said she was grateful Henry County has county zoning and moratorium in place to study the issue before a data center can locate here.She urged the board to overlay the county’s wind energy ordinance over any potential ordinance that could govern solar power and data centers.
Patton added that the initial impact on work force in the area is substantial, but once in operation the jobs impact doesn’t align with the large incentives the companies want to locate here.
Supervisor Chairman Chad White said companies looking to locate a data center or bitcoin mine in the county have made phone calls to the county’s Planning and Zoning Director, Joe Buffington. White said Buffington did not share details of what companies had made inquiries with the county.
Bill Crawford, another member of the Henry Count Watchman said Buffington serves at the pleasure of the county board and should be sharing that detailed information with them.
Rural Utilities Service Systems Director Bruce Hudson also spoke Thursday about the prolifieration of alternative energy production systems in southeast Iowa. RUSS handles land use administration for Louisa County, which has recently embarked on the installation of large-scale solar field arrays.
Hudson said property tax legislation from 2023, has eliminated a county’s ability to collect too much of an increase in property taxes from these projects because of an imposed property valuation growth cap of two percent.
“That (increased property tax receipts) may have been a discussion five years ago, but not anymore,” Hudson said.
Before the start of the public meeting, the board held its regular weekly meeting.
The board voted unanimously against an $11,000 allocation to the Henry County Preservation fund. Supervisor Steve Detrick said the county provided funding in the year’s past as seed money to produce books for the organization to sell to have funds to carry out its mission. Detrick said the seed money is budgeted each year out of the county’s rural basic tax levy, and he isn’t comfortable allowing the practice to continue without knowing where the Historic Preservation Commission allocates its dollars to other organizations.
“They should have enough seed money by now,” Detrick said.
Supervisor Marc Lindeen said the amount is included in the coming fiscal year budget and over the years, the organization sometimes asks for the allocated amount, and sometimes they do not.
The next meeting of the Henry County Board of Supervisors is Thursday, July 2 at 9 a.m. at the Henry County Courthouse, 100 E. Washington Street, Mount Pleasant.
