Google Deaf Smith County data center and renewables project (north of Hereford)
Plans have been filed for Google Deaf Smith County data center and renewables project (north of Hereford), a data center in Deaf Smith County, TX. Hundreds of residents packed the Hereford Civic Center in July 2026 seeking answers on a planned Google data center and associated renewable energy project north of Hereford, chiefly over Ogallala water use. Would be Google's fourth Panhandle-area site after Armstrong, Gray and Wilbarger counties. (Source dated 2026-07-15.).
Project status
- Announced
- Permitting
- Under constructionNot yet
- OperationalNot yet
Recorded changes
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Community sentiment
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What’s next
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Latest news
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Stories about it, and about Deaf Smith County, TX, land here.
Records and documentation
Texas state legislation
- PUCT Docket No. 59475 - Oncor/LCRA Bell County East Switch-Big Hill 765kV Transmission LineFiled March 2026; 122 alternative routes, 835+ protests. Explicitly justified by data-center load concentration in the Temple/Bell/Williamson County corridor; an intervenor has questioned whether specific "Temple Data Centers" were properly included in the load forecast.Download
- PUCT Docket No. 59142 - ERCOT Large Load Interconnection "Batch Zero" ProcessPUCT approved (~June 2026) ERCOT's one-time transitional study process for ≥75MW load interconnection requests; tied to Gov. Abbott's Aug 2026 directive pausing/auditing the queue. CenterPoint reported ~14GW of its own projects positioned in this batch.Download
- PUCT Project No. 58481 - Large Load Interconnection Standards Rulemaking (PURA §37.0561)Statewide rulemaking adopting 16 TAC §25.194, interconnection standards for new/expanding loads ≥75MW (data centers). Adopted 2026 with a flat $100k study fee, eliminated non-refundable interconnection fee.Download
- Economic Development Program Agreement (Seafox) / Tax Abatement & Road Improvements AgreementsMOU-based economic development program agreement (plus a Chapter 312 tax abatement agreement and a road-improvements development agreement) covering a data center project in El Paso.Download
- PUCT Docket No. 59399 - Comanche Peak Power Company Net Metering Application (Amazon)Pending as of mid-2026 -- test case for data center co-location against dispatchable (nuclear) generation. Amazon data center campus paired with the Comanche Peak nuclear plant, Somervell County.Download
Site details
- Operator
- County
- Deaf Smith County, TX
- Address
- Deaf Smith County, TX
- Stage
- Planned
Capacity and size: not on file
Map
Photos
It took 3 months to get inside this massive Texas data center - here’s what we sawFOX 4 News
Texas AG Ken Paxton Sends Compliance Letters to 156 Data Centers over Water Usage ReportingBreitbart News Network
156 Texas data centers warned to comply with water use reporting requirementsFOX 4 News
Texas Agency Tries To Keep Data Centers Hidden Over Terror FearsNewsweek
Texas puts data center permits on hold.The Verge
Gov. Abbott pauses new data center permits until water, power audit completeCBS News
ComEd customers could pay billions for data center hookups, warns utility watchdog groupShaw Local Enewspapers
An $8 billion Treasury break helped Meta’s tax rate hit 2%. Senators want data center tax answersFortune
The states with the fewest and most data centers, rankedBusiness Insider
Finns Are Seething After Google Illegally Toppled 250,000 Trees for a Data CenterMother Jones
Google offer to pay others to help data center powerArkansas Online
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