Satellite and drone images reveal big delays in US data center construction
Silicon Valley has been pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into building ever-larger AI data centers that require as much electricity as hundreds of thousands of US homes—but that massive buildout faces significant construction and power challenges along with growing local resistance. Now satellite imagery is showing that nearly 40 percent of US data center projects may fail to be completed this year as scheduled.
The Financial Times drew upon satellite imagery from the geospatial data analytics company SynMax showing how much progress has been made in clearing land and laying building foundations for each data center project. It also cross-checked project progress against public statements and permit documents compiled by the industry research group IIR Energy. The resulting analysis revealed how major projects from tech companies such as Microsoft, Oracle, and OpenAI are “likely to miss completion dates by more than three months.”
Interviews with more than a dozen industry executives highlighted data center delays caused by “chronic shortages of labor, power and equipment” along with the process of securing the necessary permits, according to the Financial Times. Construction executives involved with OpenAI projects specifically mentioned not having enough tradespeople, such as electricians and pipe fitters, to work on multiple data center projects.
