Megawatt (MW)
The unit everything is measured in. A data center’s size is quoted in megawatts of IT load or critical power, not square feet. A 100 MW campus is large. A 1,000 MW (1 GW) campus is a hyperscale flagship. Roughly, 1 MW powers about 750 average American homes.
Hyperscaler
One of the handful of companies that operate data centers at enormous scale for their own use: Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Meta, Oracle, and a few others.
Colocation
A data center whose owner leases space and power to many tenants rather than using it themselves.
Interconnection
The process of connecting a new large load to the electric grid. It involves the utility and the regional grid operator, and it is the single biggest schedule risk for a project.
ISO / RTO
Independent System Operator or Regional Transmission Organization. The entity that runs the wholesale grid in a region. ERCOT covers most of Texas, PJM covers the Mid-Atlantic and parts of the Midwest, MISO covers the central US.
Behind the meter
Generation built on or next to the site that powers the campus directly instead of drawing from the grid. Increasingly common because grid interconnection is slow.
Option agreement
A contract that gives a developer the right, but not the obligation, to buy your land at a set price within a set period. You get a payment for granting the option. Terms vary enormously.
PUE
Power Usage Effectiveness. Total facility power divided by IT power. Lower is more efficient. Modern hyperscale sites run around 1.1 to 1.2.
Announced versus built
An announced project has a press release. A permitted project has approvals. An operating project has servers running. This site records which one a figure refers to.