Project Red Clay
Hayneville, Lowndes County, ALDeveloper: Cloverleaf Infrastructure
- Rumored
- Proposed
- Approved
- Under construction
- Operating
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Cloverleaf Infrastructure is planning a hyperscale data center campus on farmland near U.S. Highway 80 and Alabama Highway 21 in Lowndes County, west of Montgomery. In October 2026 the County Commission voted 3-2 for large property and sales tax abatements, in a brief meeting where the item was not on the agenda. Reports differ on the acreage and the abatement's value, no end user has been named, and conservation groups object to the process and the water and power demand.
- Planned capacity
- 1.5 GW
- up to; reported as 1.5 GW by SELC
- Permanent jobs (promised)
- 225
- at least; WAKA reports a range of 50 to 225
Key facts
Size & schedule
| Planned capacity | 1.5 GW [1] up to; reported as 1.5 GW by SELC |
|---|---|
| Site size | 1,100 acres [1] initial plan per GovTech/al.com; the project agreement reportedly caps expansion at 2,200 acres without county approval. SELC describes the site as 800 acres of farmland |
| Floor area | 3 million sq ft [1] |
| Buildings | 6 [1] totaling 3 million square feet |
| Permanent jobs (promised) | 225 [1] at least; WAKA reports a range of 50 to 225 |
| Construction jobs | 1,000 [1] more than |
How big is that? Data center sizes compared with football fields and Central Park.
Power
| Utility | Alabama Power [1] Utility pages: Alabama Power · data centers and bills |
|---|
Water
| Water use | 100,000 gal/day [3] up to; initial demand from the Pintlala Water System |
|---|---|
| Water source | Pintlala Water System [3] |
Money & incentives
| Tax incentives | Abatement of 50% of county non-educational property tax plus construction and equipment-refresh sales/use tax, valued by al.com at more than $1.1 billion; SELC cites about $2.8 billion combined with state breaks over 20 years [1] |
|---|
Figures are as stated by the cited source. Where sources disagree, each figure is shown.
Water and power
Water
- up to 100,000 gallons per day [3]Projection or estimate. Developer's estimate of the water the campus would need from the Pintlala Water System.As of Oct 14, 2026 · Data Center Gets Massive Tax Break in Surprise Vote by Lowndes Commission
Disclosed figures only, each as the cited source states it. Many are projections or permit limits, not metered use. How data center water and power use is measured, and every disclosed figure →
Timeline
Lowndes County Commission votes 3-2 to approve tax abatements for the project in a short meeting; the item was not on the posted agenda [1]
Southern Environmental Law Center criticizes the vote for lacking public notice and comment and raises water, power and wastewater questions [3]
Local TV reports residents' opposition after the approval; the commission chairman calls the deal a win for the county [2]
Issues raised
- Opponents say the abatement vote was taken without public notice or comment and question compliance with open-meetings law [3]
- Groups raise concerns about water demand, a 1.5 GW power load and undisclosed wastewater plans [3]
- Supporters, including the commission chairman, say the project brings large tax revenue and jobs to the county [1][2]
Issues are concerns and claims raised by the parties, officials or residents named in the cited sources. They are reported as attributed, not as findings by the Census.
Sources
- Lowndes County, Ala., Approves $1.1B in Data Center Tax BreaksGovTech (reprinting al.com) · Oct 14, 2026 · news
- Lowndes Co. Commission approves controversial data center projectWAKA 8 · Oct 15, 2026 · news
- Data Center Gets Massive Tax Break in Surprise Vote by Lowndes CommissionSouthern Environmental Law Center · Oct 14, 2026 · other
Cite this page
Last updated Oct 19, 2026. Figures may change as records are updated — include the date you retrieved them.
| APA | Data Center Census. (2026). Project Red Clay. Retrieved from https://datacentercensus.com/dc/project-red-clay-lowndes-county-al |
|---|---|
| MLA | “Project Red Clay.” Data Center Census, Oct 19, 2026, https://datacentercensus.com/dc/project-red-clay-lowndes-county-al. |
| Link | https://datacentercensus.com/dc/project-red-clay-lowndes-county-al |
Republishing a figure or table? Attribute it to Data Center Census with a link to this page. The underlying data is downloadable as JSON and CSV; the press kit has standing figures and contact details.