The data center company that opened a $250 million facility in New Albany's International Business Park in September 2025 is fighting to keep a second project alive in Alabama, where a city council is weighing a 480-day freeze on new data center permits.
Edged Energy's proposed $93 million facility in Prichard, Alabama, known as Project Gateway, faces a potential moratorium after the Prichard City Council voted 4-0 on July 31 to schedule an Aug. 13 public hearing on the ban, AL.com reported. Council president Traci Hale introduced the moratorium resolution.
"All money ain't good money," Hale said at the July 31 meeting, according to AL.com.
The Prichard project, an approximately 8-megawatt networking hub at 214 Telegraph Road near Africatown, is far smaller than Edged's New Albany campus. But the regulatory pushback comes as the developer pursues a multi-billion-dollar expansion across multiple states.
Edged's New Albany footprint
Edged opened its two-story, 206,000-square-foot data center at 6385 New Albany Road East on Sept. 10, 2025, according to New Albany Community Development records. The facility delivers 24 megawatts of capacity and uses a waterless cooling system that achieves a power usage effectiveness of roughly 1.1 to 1.15, according to Baxtel.
The New Albany project received a 15-year, 100% real property tax abatement. Data centers collectively generated $10 million in community development charge revenue for New Albany in tax year 2024, according to the city's data center finance page.
Alabama opposition mounts
In Prichard, a city of roughly 20,000 near Mobile, community opposition has been fierce. A Change.org petition against Project Gateway had gathered more than 4,200 signatures as of Aug. 10, Data Center Dynamics reported. Prichard Mayor Carletta Davis urged the council on Facebook to pass the moratorium quickly so the city has "proper safeguards in place."
Prichard is not alone. Birmingham, Leeds, Homewood, Cullman and Fort Payne have all approved temporary data center moratoriums in Alabama, according to AL.com.
Edged, founded by Aligned Data Centers founder Jakob Carnemark, is a portfolio company of Koch Real Estate Investments. The company secured nearly $2 billion in financing in 2026 to expand its portfolio in markets including Atlanta, Chicago and Council Bluffs, Iowa, according to Baxtel.
What it means locally
No public statements from New Albany officials address the Alabama situation or Edged's local project status. The New Albany facility is already operational, and no evidence suggests the Prichard moratorium would affect it directly. But the episode illustrates the regulatory headwinds data center developers face nationally, a dynamic New Albany residents have watched play out closer to home with a state bill that would require voter approval for future data center projects.
The Prichard public hearing was scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 13. The council could vote on the moratorium at or after that hearing. No outcome has been reported as of press time.
