First Data Center Project Topped Out

PowerHouse Data Centers on Friday celebrated the topping out milestone of its first Northern Virginia facility.

Located on Beaumeade Circle just blocks from the MAE-East internet hub, the two-story, 265,000-square-foot ABX-1 data center is the first of three planned by the company in Loudoun County.

Built on a 10-acre site, the ABX-1 campus will deliver 45 megawatts in six data halls, with an ability to expand to 80MW. The company also has acquired 43 acres of the former AOL campus along Pacific Boulevard where three three-story data center buildings are planned. Along Arcola Boulevard, Powerhouse has 23 acres where it plans two two-story data centers. Construction on those projects is expected to begin next year—representing a billion-dollar investment among the three projects over the next three years.

Doug Fleit, co-founder and CEO of PowerHouse’s parent company American Real Estate Partners, said the Beaumeade property is one of the most connected sites on the globe.

Speaking to the construction team at the Feb. 17 topping out celebration, Fleit said a key challenge to developing the site was bringing still more power into the heart of Data Center Alley. While a new substation was likely needed, surrendering five acres for that use was a tough sell. However, after working with Dominion Energy a new plan was developed, creating a 300MW substation on only 1.5 acres of the ABX-1 campus—providing enough power for that project as well as three or four other data centers in the area.

In addition to touting a productive partnership with Dominion Energy, Fleit commended the work of the county government.

“They have a lot of smart, hardworking, dedicated people at the county, but it starts at the top,” he said, citing local leaders’ dedication to high quality projects and commitment to collaboration with the industry.

Loudoun County Economic Development Executive Director Buddy Rizer said that over the past 16 years, more than $50 billion has been invested in the county’s data centers. He welcomed the PowerHouse partnership into the mix.

“What you do with this building is just starting, it's the beginning of something special. It's the creation of a new company that is enabled by the infrastructure that Loudoun County has to offer. We're able to work together to create something that is just entirely unique,” Rizer said. “We look at what we've created here in Loudoun County, and some people look at it and they think, ‘well, we got a lot of that.’ Well, it’s not that we don't have a lot of it. We have the most important assets for the future of this country. It's just critical that we continue to build on that.”

Also joining in the topping out celebration were Loudoun Supervisors Sylvia Glass (D-Broad Run) and Kristen Umstattd (D-Leesburg).

After the ceremony, company leaders and other dignitaries signed a steel beam it was raised to the top of the building and fixed in place.

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