Data Center Record.

The sourced public record of data center development.

GA · Effingham County

OpenAI Effingham County Data Center

waiting on permits Skeleton record, unreviewed

OpenAI is planning a large data center in Effingham County, Georgia, for which Georgia Power received approval for a 3.2 GW power deal, and which faces a citizen-led zoning lawsuit and questions about water and electric bill impacts.

Last verified

Where it stands
waiting on permits
Who is building it
OpenAI
How much power it needs
3.2 GW
What it is for
Not disclosed
Who it serves
Not disclosed
First recorded
September 4, 2026

What has been disclosed

FigureValueWho says soSource
How much power it needs 3.2 GW not disclosed
How much water it would use Not disclosed
How loud it would be Not disclosed
Jobs once it runs Not disclosed
Tax it would pay each year Not disclosed

Each figure says who gave it. The developer's figure is what the company said; what a permit allows is the ceiling a permit sets; measured means observed. Nothing here is estimated by the record. Water is in gallons a day or a year, whichever the source stated; a tax claim given as a range shows both ends, each linked to the source that gave it.

What it is for and whom it serves

No source on file says what this facility is for. The use is recorded as not disclosed until one does.

Tenants, tenancy and promises to the community: not disclosed.

What happened, and when

  1. September 2, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    The free meal program is scheduled to begin on Tuesday, September 8, 2026 wtoc.com, query feed

  2. September 2, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    Campus is 1,400 acres youtube.com, query feed

  3. September 2, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    The Development Authority and OpenAI began their conversations in October youtube.com, query feed

  4. August 29, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    OpenAI announced a $20 billion data center in Effingham County ajc.com, query feed

  5. August 24, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    OpenAI announced the project in July with a proposed $20 billion data center campus effinghamherald.net, query feed

  6. August 24, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    Project Camellia covers approximately 1,400 acres and could require up to 3.2 gigawatts of power effinghamherald.net, query feed

  7. August 12, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    Georgia Power entered into a 25-year agreement with OpenAI to provide 3.2 gigawatts of electricity effinghamherald.net, query feed

  8. August 11, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    Site will operate a closed-loop cooling system to continuously recycle the same water instead of relying on evaporative methods wtoc.com, query feed

  9. August 11, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    Agreement mandates that developers draw only from treated surface rivers rather than underground groundwater wtoc.com, query feed

  10. August 7, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    Project Camellia has cleared initial hurdles through the county's development authority wtoc.com, query feed

  11. August 6, 2026 (content date) approved

    OpenAI data center planned for Effingham County gpb.org, query feed

  12. August 3, 2026 (content date) approved

    Project planned for phased development between 2028 and 2032 savannahnow.com, query feed

  13. August 3, 2026 (content date) approved

    1,440-acre data center campus with four buildings and combined footprint of 720,000 square feet savannahnow.com, query feed

  14. August 3, 2026 (content date) approved

    Effingham County Industrial Development Authority approved incentive package for OpenAI data center on July 21, 2026 savannahnow.com, query feed

  15. August 2, 2026 (content date) proposed

    OpenAI planned $20 billion data center campus with 4.4 million square feet in Effingham County ajc.com, query feed

  16. July 29, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Project has multi-year five-phase timeline with first phase targeted to begin construction by late 2028 and entire project completed by end of 2034 wtoc.com, query feed

  17. July 29, 2026 (content date) proposed

    County records show the Special Payment in Lieu of Taxes agreement gives OpenAI a 37.5 percent annual property tax reduction, assessing the property at 25 percent of fair market value instead of the standard 40 percent, locked at the 2026 millage rate for 15 years wtoc.com, query feed

  18. July 28, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Savannah Gateway property has been zoned industrial since 2006 effinghamherald.net, query feed

  19. July 28, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Agreement gave Broe and OmniTRAX authority as sole and exclusive agent, attorney-in-fact and master developer of nearly 2,600 acres of ECIDA-owned land effinghamherald.net, query feed

  20. July 28, 2026 (content date) proposed

    In February 2016, ECIDA board voted 7-1 to partner with OmniTRAX in collaboration with Broe Real Estate Group as master developer effinghamherald.net, query feed

  21. July 28, 2026 (content date) proposed

    ECIDA purchased the property near Rincon in 2006 from International Paper for about $31 million effinghamherald.net, query feed

  22. July 28, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Project announced July 22 followed by public information open house July 23 effinghamherald.net, query feed

  23. July 28, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Project Camellia is a planned 1,400-acre data center campus at the Savannah Gateway Industrial Hub effinghamherald.net, query feed

  24. July 25, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    County must wait until DRI process complete before initiating engineering reviews, fire and stormwater plans, or noise level evaluations thecurrentga.org, query feed

  25. July 25, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    Georgia Coastal Regional Commission must evaluate project in no more than 30 days thecurrentga.org, query feed

  26. July 25, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    DRI form submitted July 23, 2026 by Effingham County Senior Planner Kimberly Barlett with blank spaces for water usage, energy supply, and environmental impacts thecurrentga.org, query feed

  27. July 25, 2026 (content date) waiting on permits

    Project Camellia must undergo Georgia Developments of Regional Impact process before construction can begin thecurrentga.org, query feed

  28. July 23, 2026 (content date) approved

    Effingham County Industrial Development Authority was initially approached about the data center around fall 2025 thecurrentga.org, query feed

  29. July 23, 2026 (content date) approved

    OpenAI promises $80 million in community benefits including sports fields and free training for school students thecurrentga.org, query feed

  30. July 23, 2026 (content date) approved

    OpenAI will receive short-term tax abatements during construction and become the county's largest taxpayer after opening in 2028 thecurrentga.org, query feed

  31. July 23, 2026 (content date) approved

    OpenAI data center project covers 2,600 acres at Savannah Gateway Industrial Hub thecurrentga.org, query feed

  32. July 23, 2026 (content date) approved

    OpenAI data center project in Effingham County announced without any public comment or vote thecurrentga.org, query feed

  33. July 23, 2026 (content date) approved

    Nearly 1,000 people attended an open house on July 23, 2026 about the $20 billion OpenAI data center project in Effingham County thecurrentga.org, query feed

  34. July 23, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Site is next to a high school and less than a mile from a park youtube.com, query feed

  35. July 23, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Under a 25-year agreement, OpenAI agreed to cut up to 1,000 megawatts during peak demand to help grid reliability youtube.com, query feed

  36. July 23, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Project Camellia covers about 1,400 acres inside Savannah Gateway Industrial Hub with four buildings and $20 billion price tag youtube.com, query feed

  37. July 22, 2026 (content date) proposed

    25-year agreement with Georgia Power prnewswire.com, query feed

  38. July 22, 2026 (content date) proposed

    OpenAI announced plans for a new project in Effingham County, Georgia, about 45 minutes outside of Savannah prnewswire.com, query feed

  39. July 22, 2026 (content date) approved

    The site is located just outside of Rincon in Effingham County thecurrentga.org, query feed

  40. July 22, 2026 (content date) approved

    Data center is scheduled to open in phases starting in 2028 thecurrentga.org, query feed

  41. July 22, 2026 (content date) approved

    OpenAI data center will comprise four buildings at Savannah Gateway Industrial Hub thecurrentga.org, query feed

  42. July 22, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Site is located at Savannah Gateway Industrial Hub, approximately 12 miles northwest of the Port of Savannah youtube.com, query feed

  43. July 22, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Construction is expected to begin in 2028 and finish by 2032, with operations planned from 2028; project discussions began in November 2023 (dates also on WTOC and the county video, card 3925) youtube.com, query feed

  44. July 22, 2026 (content date) proposed

    Campus will cover more than 1,400 acres on McCall Road in Effingham County youtube.com, query feed

  45. July 22, 2026 (content date) proposed

    OpenAI proposes a $20 billion data center campus in Effingham County youtube.com, query feed

Newest first. Earlier entries are never overwritten; each carries the source it rests on. The badge on each entry is the status the record moved to.

Sources

Reporting

60 sources on file. Primary documents are filings, minutes, dockets and official pages; reporting is how an event was found, and the document is what gets cited where one exists.

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Data Center Record, "OpenAI Effingham County Data Center", https://datacenterrecord.org/projects/openai-effingham-county-data-center-ga. Data: Data Center Record, datacenterrecord.org, CC BY 4.0.

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For researchers
Slug
openai-effingham-county-data-center-ga
Status value
permitting
Tier
skeleton
Place id
us/ga/effingham-county
Coordinates
Not disclosed
Location precision
Not disclosed
Location source
Not disclosed
Coordinate source
Not disclosed
Use type values
not_disclosed
Capacity basis
not_disclosed
Water basis
not_disclosed, gallons_per_day
Published
2026-09-04
Last verified
2026-09-08