Susquehanna Steam Electric Station

Verdantas partnered with Talen Energy to advance a pioneering 1,200-acre data center campus in Pennsylvania, powered by zero-carbon nuclear energy from the Susquehanna Steam Electric Station. The program was conceived as a first-of-its-kind campus integrating large-scale digital infrastructure with a dedicated, sustainable energy solution.

Verdantas provided comprehensive multidisciplinary engineering services across the campus development lifecycle, including land development, environmental permitting, power delivery, digital infrastructure, building design, and program management. The team used virtual reality, reality capture and 3D laser scanning, BIM/VDC workflows, visual data processing, and drone-supported construction monitoring to improve design coordination, verification, communication, and issue visibility among stakeholders.

Project Significance

• A 1 GW data center campus planned across approximately 1,200 acres adjacent to a 2.5 GW nuclear generation asset.
• A behind-the-meter energy strategy supported by four substations at 500 kV, 230 kV, and 69 kV, together with related delivery transmission and a behind-the-meter tap.
• A coordinated campus delivery model spanning utility-scale power infrastructure, warm-lit and cold-dark shell development, and a 200 MW nuclear-powered digital mining facility.
• A technology-enabled approach designed to accelerate delivery through integrated risk management, program management, and multidisciplinary coordination.

Holistic Approach

Verdantas applied an integrated delivery model that linked energy generation and delivery with site, building, environmental, water, utility, and digital infrastructure requirements. This approach enabled the campus to be planned as a coordinated system rather than as separate utility, site, and building packages.

Power Generation and Delivery

• Power-generation assessments and fatal-flaw analysis, supported by nuclear and renewable energy expertise.
• Purpose-built data center transmission and substation electrical architecture.
• Electrical system architecture leadership, design support, procurement coordination, and utility-level expertise applied to campus development.
• Four substations at 500 kV, 230 kV, and 69 kV, related delivery transmission, and a behind-the-meter tap.
• Tertiary power planning, including backup generator selection and permitting, plus natural-gas pipeline and station design.

Site Development, Due Diligence, and Permitting

• Campus master planning and preliminary site planning.
• Site-selection services; Phase I, Phase II, and property-condition assessments; environmental remediation; geotechnical engineering; and probabilistic cost modeling.
• Land development and state, local, and environmental permitting.
• Utility planning for domestic, fire, and industrial water; sanitary sewer; fiber; and electric service.
• Stormwater management, erosion and sediment control, and pavement design.

Digital Infrastructure and Building Design

• Integrated mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and architectural building design.
• Electrical distribution and underground routing.
• Security infrastructure, including fencing, gates, card readers, guard houses, and cameras.
• Underground fiber routing and redundant line planning.
• Warm-lit and cold-dark shell solutions incorporating dynamic compaction, tilt-wall construction, and castellated beams.

Water, Cooling, and Facility Resilience

• Industrial cooling-water design and permitting, including surface-water withdrawal, intake and discharge, and groundwater-withdrawal design.
• Climate-risk assessments and facility-hardening considerations.
• Physical and computational fluid dynamics airflow modeling for the digital mining facility.