Karen Mooney, MD Anderson Cancer Center
Data center development in Texas is straining demand for construction materials and equipment
Data centers in Houston, Texas
Houston has 5 data centers on the record: 3 running and 2 proposed. No city rule about data centers is on the record for Houston yet. Harris County's own decisions are on the Harris County page.
How to read this page. Every count comes from the records on this page and links to where it is counted. Nothing is published until a person reads its source, and a figure no source gives reads Not disclosed; nothing is estimated. A rating changes only when a person sets it.
The 5 data centers in Houston
Newest activity firstEach row is one site with its stage, its latest dated entry and what its sources disclose. A figure no source gives reads Not disclosed.
- Land
- Not disclosed
- Power
- Not disclosed
- Water
- Not disclosed
- Tenant
- Not disclosed
- Land
- Not disclosed
- Power
- Not disclosed
- Water
- Not disclosed
- Tenant
- Not disclosed
- Land
- Not disclosed
- Power
- Not disclosed
- Water
- Not disclosed
- Tenant
- Not disclosed
- Land
- Not disclosed
- Power
- Not disclosed
- Water
- Not disclosed
- Tenant
- Not disclosed
- Land
- Not disclosed
- Power
- Not disclosed
- Water
- Not disclosed
- Tenant
- Not disclosed
Where
Drag with one finger to move the map, pinch to zoom. Tap a pin for the data center, a county for its rules
5 data centers in Houston: 3 running, 2 proposed. A dashed edge means the exact site is not in the public record; every pin here marks a town or the county.
What was said
MD Anderson Cancer Center delayed two projects planned for next five years due to data center boom impacts
Data centers have tied up large swaths of steel and concrete supply
Paul Bettencourt, state senator, said counties do not have the legal authority to ban data center construction
Every Texas statement, by speaker
14 more statements on this page
Chris Tomlinson, journalist
Counties asked Attorney General Ken Paxton what power they retained, and he did not answer six months later
Chris Tomlinson, journalist
Abbott and Republican lawmakers passed multiple laws providing property tax cuts to data centers
Chris Tomlinson, journalist
Governor Greg Abbott invited data center companies to Texas and promised low taxes, regulations, cheap electricity and water
Meta spokesperson
Meta pledged to pay for own infrastructure and launched fund for water and energy infrastructure investment
OpenAI pledged to pay for own infrastructure, support new electricity sources and minimize water usage
Republican Party of Texas Legislative Priorities Committee member and Bexar County judge candidate
Patrick Von Dohlen said at least a quarter of 160 plus testimony speakers were concerned about AI data centers
Republican Party of Texas proposes prohibiting all tax payer funded incentives, property tax abatements, corporate welfare, or economic development packages for data centers
Republican Party of Texas proposes requiring major data centers to secure their own independent power generation and non potable water sources
Republican Party of Texas convention delegate
Rolando Garcia said data centers use massive amounts of water and electricity, and Texas is already having problems with its electrical grid and water infrastructure
Republican Party of Texas proposes granting cities and counties final authority over zoning, land development, and comprehensive planning decisions for data centers
Republican Party of Texas Legislative Priorities Committee named regulating AI as the 15th of its top 15 priorities for the 2027 Legislature
Republican Party of Texas proposes mandating that data center construction companies pay full impact fees to compensate communities
State Senator (R-Houston), chair of Senate Local Government Committee
Paul Bettencourt said he is open to Texas' 254 counties having more input on data centers but stressed critical importance to state and country economic development
The county and nearby counties
Disclosed figures
nothing disclosed by 5 records
Power, water, jobs and tax
| Figure | Disclosed total | Disclosed | Not disclosed | Basis | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power | Not disclosed | 0 | 5 | Not disclosed by any of the 5 records | |
| Water, stated per day | Not disclosed | 0 | 5 | Not disclosed by any of the 5 records | |
| Water, stated per year | Not disclosed | 0 | 5 | Not disclosed by any of the 5 records | |
| Permanent jobs | Not disclosed | 0 | 5 | Not disclosed by any of the 5 records | |
| Tax each year | Not disclosed | 0 | 5 | Not disclosed by any of the 5 records |
Summed only where a record disclosed the figure; a record with no figure adds nothing and is counted as not disclosed. Water is summed per day and per year separately, as the sources stated it, and never converted. A tax claim given as a range is summed at both ends.
By what the facilities are for
| Use | Records | Power | Water | Jobs | Tax each year | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not disclosed | 5 | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed: power, water, jobs, tax each year |
A record that lists several uses counts once under each. Each cell is the sum over the records with that use, disclosed rows only.
What the facilities are for
No source on file states what any of the 5 tracked facilities in Houston are for.
How the facilities are cooled
No source on file states how any of the 5 tracked facilities in Houston are cooled.
Cite this page
Data Center Record, "Data centers in Houston, Harris County, Texas", https://datacenterrecord.org/states/tx/harris-county/houston, updated September 17, 2026.
Cite this page
Data Center Record, "Data center records in Houston, Harris County, Texas", https://datacenterrecord.org/states/tx/harris-county/houston. Data: Data Center Record, datacenterrecord.org, CC BY 4.0.
The structured rows are CC BY 4.0. Link to this page; that is what turns a reuse into a citation. Prose stays under copyright.
The rows here are part of the Texas export.
For researchers
- Place id
- us/tx/harris-county/houston
- Level
- city
- Census GEOID
- Not disclosed
- Rating value
- Not disclosed
- Scale word
- Not disclosed