$2.1 billion Vantage data center announced for Fairfield County

MILLERSPORT, Ohio (WCMH) -- After months of speculation, the state confirmed that Vantage Data Centers is behind a $2.1 billion data center project in Fairfield County.

Originally estimated at $1 billion, Gov. Mike DeWine said the project will be an investment twice that size and plans to create 37 full-time positions at a site off State Routes 204 and 37. Residents of the village of Millersport knew a data center was coming, but some told NBC4 they were worried the investment would harm the community's way of life.

“I’ll be honest, this whole data center deal feels like a hoodwink,” Millersport resident Zack Gorsuch told NBC4 in June. “Millersport is a small, beautiful village with deep roots and real community. A massive industrial box dropped on farmland doesn’t add value — it takes away the quiet, the charm, and the natural character that makes this place special.”

On Tuesday, Fairfield County commissioners considered a development agreement between the county, Millersport and Vantage Data Centers, indicating county support for construction. The state will also provide support for the project; DeWine said Vantage received a 50% tax exemption for 10 years on certain purchases related to the Millersport project.

State agencies would not confirm that Vantage was behind the data center plans this summer, but the Denver-based data center company was the most widely expected customer. Wednesday's announcement appears to be the first confirmation from the state that Vantage is behind the Millersport project.

Although no name was given, Fairfield County commissioners said a data center company was planned for Millersport in their meetings. An application filed with the Ohio Power Siting Board offered more details, requesting state authorization to build the Millersport Energy Center, a power-generating facility to provide energy for a data center.

However, the energy center application was withdrawn in September with little explanation. It is not clear what will be used in its place to power the Vantage data center. Although the scope of the Millersport data center is not yet public, even small data centers require major amounts of energy.

Residents wrote to the state objecting the data center. Millersport resident Jessica Palmer wrote the Ohio Power Siting Board asking them to deny the request, saying the data center will put families out of their homes.

"It will cause an increase in traffic that the Village of Millersport is not equipped to handle, an increase in the population that the Village of Millersport is not equipped to handle, and most importantly, destroy the hometown feel that we, the residents of the Village of Millersport, have worked so hard to achieve and secure," Palmer wrote.

The state did not provide a timeline for Vantage's project. The now-withdrawn power station had planned to begin construction in 2026.

This marks the second central Ohio investment for Vantage Data Centers, which broke ground in New Albany in October 2024. New Albany's project was a $2 billion investment that is still under construction.