Another Hydro Data Center for Oregon?

A California data center consultant, CDH Consulting, has leased 25 acres of land in a business park in Morrow County, Oregon with plans to develop a data center project. The vacant land in Heppner, Oregon is within the Port of Morrow and could receive affordable electric power from the Columbia Basin Electrical Cooperative. The CDH site is about 50 miles from Google's data center campus at The Dalles, Oregon.

Chris Hardin, president of Santa Clara, Calif.-based CDH, told local officials that he is in talks with clients about building a data center project that could involve an investment of $100 million. "It's very preliminary," Hardin said, adding that "we've identified some key factors. This particular site has a high percentage of those qualifications."

Jerry Healy, general manager of Columbia Basin Electric Cooperative in Heppner, told local media that Heppner isn't the only place in Oregon where corporations are seeking to establish data centers. "Oregon has probably the cheapest power structure on the West Coast," he said, "and that's why they're looking in Oregon. We'd certainly like to see an opportunity like this in Heppner."

CDH has a one-year option on the site, which is located in the Port of Morrow, a 12,000 acre industrial park. The land leased by CDH was previously part of the Kinzua Mill logging operation, and has fiber connectivity from Windwave Communications.