Plans for natural gas-powered data center campus in North Carolina have been rejected by local officials.

As reported by BizJournal and others, Energy Storage Solutions LLC recently submitted a special-use permit application with the Town of Tarboro in Edgecombe County for a data center development.

However, the Tarboro Town Council originally voted to table the discussion until its September 8 meeting in order to gather more information and has now rejected requests for a special use permit.

"Us as a council, we haven't done our research," Tarboro councilwoman Sabrina Bynum said toward the end of the hearing. "And it's hard for me to make a decision just based upon what each witness has provided to us tonight."

The company aims to build on 52 acres on the south side of Anaconda Road, between McNair Road and Western Boulevard. Two 25MW data centers and a 50MW data center are reportedly planned, as well as an on-site substation.

Dan Shaffer, one of the members of Energy Storage Solutions, told BJ that the project will entail a $6.4 billion investment across eight phases.

The site will rely on behind-the-meter natural gas from Piedmont Natural Gas – a natural gas pipeline that runs near the property – as well as a 250MW BESS (Battery Energy Storage System).

"We will use a 'carbon sponge' clean energy system to capture the CO2 and other emissions as a 'green sequestration' system," the application materials state. "The project will be built behind the meter and generate energy production via a natural gas 'green' generation system, that will store the energy generated within a BESS."

Goforth Solar LLC acquired the land in March.

Some reports link Energy Storage Solutions as a subsidiary of North Carolina Renewable Energy, which claims to have developed solar projects across North and South Carolina and Virginia.

A Change.org petition opposing the project has been launched and has garnered more than 770 signatures at the time of writing.

“The serene environment, character, and community cohesion we cherish in Tarboro could be dramatically altered by the presence of such a massive facility,” the petition states.

Tarboro is a town located some 70 miles east of Raleigh.