Arizona’s largest proposed data center hub clears hurdle Article originally posted on on April 17, 2026 If fully built out, the proposed campus could include as many as 59 data center buildings A prominent Arizona landowner’s plan to turn more than 3,300 acres of vacant desert land in Pinal County into a future data center hub with its own power-generating facilities is moving forward. After a lengthy Q&A session with Pinal County’s Planning and Zoning Committee members at an April 16 meeting, the committee ultimately voted 7-2 to recommend approval for rezoning the site. The applicant and landowner, Vermaland LLC, is calling the project the La Osa Energy Center. It would include up to 59 data center buildings along with two gas-fired power plants and battery energy storage systems (BESS), according to a narrative document. The site where the project is proposed is off Picacho Highway, roughly an hour drive south of Phoenix and near the city of Eloy. Last summer, Vermaland CEO Kuldip Verma unveiled initial plans for La Osa, a future data center hub in the middle of the desert with its own power-generating facilities. Pinal County’s Planning and Zoning Commission first heard the rezoning request and recommended approval during an October meeting. During the latest meeting, the committee went back to review the rezoning request with over 30 stipulations; the vast majority of which relate to measures around protecting the desert landscape and preserving wildlife habitats. The property is currently surrounded on all sides by undeveloped, rural-zoned land. Developer commits to building new fire station, hiking trail Vermaland has also included in the request a commitment to build a new fire station for the Avra Valley Fire District, which serves the area, along with a regional hiking trail. About a third of the acreage up for rezone will also be designated as open space. Two transmission lines from Western Area Power Administration cross the central area of the project site from east to west, while another line crosses along the southern portion, according to the narrative. “Advantage of existing electrical Infrastructure would ensure power availability required for a project of this scale,” the narrative reads. Power generated on site will be sufficient to supply the initial phase of the data center campus, but more energy eventually will be needed at full build out, Court Rich, an attorney with Rose Law Group who represents Vermaland, said during the most recent meeting. Project still faces more municipal hurdles Much of the land surrounding the La Osa site is currently state-owned, which Vermaland anticipates will be used for new solar projects to add additional power capacity. Find Complete Article Here: https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2026/04/16/vermaland-data-center-pinal-county-la-osa.html