Amazon has filed for permits for its Mattermeade data center project in Virginia.
To be located in both Caroline and Spotsylvania Counties, the data center campus will sit on a 13-parcel plot spanning 1,143 acres directly southeast of the intersection of Interstate 95 and Mudd Tavern Road.
In an application to the US Army Corps of Engineers, Amazon Data Services is seeking the federal and state permits necessary to develop a campus featuring 11 two-story data center buildings and one office building.
Each data center building will use Amazon's "standardized designs" that have been constructed throughout Virginia. The company noted that making the buildings smaller would make the use of space less efficient.
Other works will include establishing access roads, a parking lot, dock areas, stormwater management facilities, three substation pads, and associated electrical utility infrastructure to connect the substations to the campus. The substations will be developed by other parties.
A letter attached to the application states that the company is seeking to develop a "minimum of 770MW of data center capacity by 2027" on the site to meet the "constantly growing demand and needs for computing and data storage infrastructure."
The letter notes that the project is part of Amazon's commitment to invest $35 billion by 2040 in developing data centers in Virginia, and additionally to meet Amazon's goal of "building a data center in each County between Northern Virginia and Richmond."
Temporary power for the construction period will be provided by existing overhead power lines with a separate feed. Cooling water will come from Spotsylvania County municipal water.
Some of the construction works will impact wetlands on the site. Amazon is purchasing 6.48 wetland credits and 2,346 stream credits to offset the impact.
Comments on the project can be submitted until March 15, 2025.
The Mattermeade data center project has been in the works since 2023. Originally dubbed Orrock Tech Campus, Amazon filed to rezone 158 acres off Orrock Road in June 2023, joining the 920 acres the company was already developing. At the time, it was said that the project would see around 4.5 million sq ft (418,063 sqm) of data center space developed.
In November 2024, both Spotsylvania and Caroline Counties granted Amazon economic incentives for the project. That month also saw Amazon files for a campus in Louisa County, Virginia.
Amazon has a significant presence in Northern Virginia and continues to expand in the area. With operating facilities in Loudoun and Fairfax Counties as well as Prince William, the company is making moves to establish data centers in Fauquier, Culpeper, King George, and Spotsylvania counties, as well as the Caroline County project.
CleanArc and Avaio are also developing data centers in Caroline County.
