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Data Center Projects in La Salle County, Texas
Last verified: October 27, 2026 · 1 tracked project · 6 tracked records
Overview
Texas Data Center Watch tracks one data center project in La Salle County: Project Star near Encinal, listed as announced. No local approvals or permits are recorded.
Federal announcement (official): On Sept. 30, 2026, the U.S. Commerce Department said Korea and the U.S. intend to proceed with a $22.3B natural gas power facility (6,472 MW) in Encinal, dedicated to supplying power to co-located data centers. It names Related Companies and NextEra as leads and gives Phase 1 commercial operation in 2029 and the full facility online in stages by 2032 (Commerce Dept.).
Company claims: Related Companies, NextEra Energy Resources and Lewis Energy Group say the 6.47 GW energy campus would supply a data center campus of up to 5 GW that Related Digital is developing on an adjacent site, with excess power to the grid. They cite about 8,400 peak construction jobs and about 170 permanent power-campus jobs, and say initial generation could come as early as 2029, subject to permitting and approvals (company release). The 5 GW campus, its adjacent site and the jobs figures come only from the companies (and, for 5 GW, Korea.net); no separate location is given for the data center campus, and its cost hasn't been stated.
Korea.net, a Korean government site, calls Project Star the first of three strategic investment projects (Korea.net). Texas Politics reported a 6,472 MW plant supplying a campus of up to 5 GW (Texas Politics).
As of Oct. 6, 2026, Texas Data Center Watch found no Project Star item in La Salle County Commissioners Court agendas (Jan. 12 to Sept. 28, 2026), City of Encinal agendas posted for 2026, ERCOT's September 2026 interconnection report for La Salle County, or TCEQ air permit applications received in La Salle County in 2026.
The Frio-Nueces Current (Oct. 7) quotes County Judge Martinez saying he wants "a seat at the table" on Project Star and plans a public forum for residents (Frio-Nueces Current).
Oct. 15 town hall: The Oct. 13 Commissioners Court agenda listed approving a town hall on the South Texas Regional Data Center Information Symposium for Oct. 15, 2026, 6 p.m., at the Alexander Convention Center (La Salle County agenda). As of Oct. 16, 2026, Texas Data Center Watch has not confirmed that the town hall was approved or held.
Tracked projects
| Project | Developer | Status | Capacity / size | Investment | Key dates | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Project Star energy campus and adjacent Related Digital data center campus, Encinal | Related Companies and NextEra Energy Resources (power campus JV); Related Digital (data center campus); Lewis Energy Group (land, produced water, natural gas) | Announced | 6,472 MW natural gas power facility dedicated to supplying co-located data centers (U.S. Commerce Dept., official); 6.47 GW to supply a 5 GW data center campus that Related Digital is developing on an adjacent site, with excess power to the grid (company; Korea.net). The 5 GW figure appears only in company and Korean-government sources; no separate location is given for the data center campus | $22.3B for the power facility (U.S. Commerce Dept., official; company headline; Korea.net); the company release body says "$22+ billion"; data center campus cost not stated in any opened source | Sep 30 2026 U.S. Commerce Department release: Korea and the U.S. intend to proceed with Project Star, led by Related Companies and NextEra, with Phase 1 commercial operation in 2029 and the full facility online in stages by 2032 (official) · Sep 30 2026 announced as selected by the U.S. Commerce Department and Korea under their strategic investment MOU (company) · Oct 1 2026 Korean and U.S. governments announced it as the first of three strategic investment projects (Korea.net, Korean government site) · first phase commercial operation slated for 2029, full operation by 2032 (Korea.net) · initial generation as early as 2029, subject to permitting and approvals (company). As of Oct 6 2026, no Project Star item was found in La Salle County Commissioners Court agendas (Jan 12 to Sep 28 2026), City of Encinal agendas posted for 2026, ERCOT's September 2026 GIS report for La Salle County, or TCEQ air permit applications received in La Salle County in 2026 (checked · none found) · Oct 13 2026 La Salle County agenda (info only) still lists approving a town hall on the South Texas Regional Data Center Information Symposium for Oct 15 2026, 6 p.m., Alexander Convention Center (official agenda, re-opened Oct 13) · whether the court approved it: outcome not posted as of Oct 13 2026 · Frio-Nueces Current (Oct 7, news) quotes County Judge Martinez seeking a public forum and a seat at the table | Company release · Korea.net · Texas Politics · U.S. Commerce Dept. · La Salle County agenda · Frio-Nueces Current |
Recorded benefits and concerns (Project Star energy campus and adjacent Related Digital data center campus):
- Benefits: Company: about 8,400 jobs at peak construction and about 170 permanent power-campus jobs
Sources for each project are linked in the table. Figures labeled "company" come from the developer.
Record timeline
| Date | Type | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 13, 2026 | Commissioners court | Agenda (info only): approve holding a town hall on South Texas Regional Data Center Information Symposium, Oct 15 6 p.m., Alexander Convention Center. | La Salle County agenda |
| Oct 7, 2026 | News | Frio-Nueces Current: Judge Martinez wants a seat at the table on Project Star and plans a public forum for residents. | Frio-Nueces Current |
| Oct 2, 2026 | News | Korea.net (Korean government site): Korea and U.S. pick Project Star as first strategic investment; first phase 2029, full operation 2032. | Korea.net |
| Oct 1, 2026 | News | Texas Politics: 6,472 MW Project Star plant to supply adjacent AI data center campus of up to 5 GW; excess power to grid. | Texas Politics |
| Sep 30, 2026 | Company announcement | Related, NextEra and Lewis Energy announce $22.3B, 6.47 GW gas campus in Encinal to power adjacent 5 GW Related Digital data center campus. | Company release |
| Sep 30, 2026 | Federal announcement | U.S. Commerce Dept.: Korea and U.S. to proceed with $22.3B, 6,472 MW gas plant in Encinal for co-located data centers. | U.S. Commerce Dept. |
What's next
These dates come from the tracker. Texas Data Center Watch has no recorded upcoming La Salle County hearings or votes on data centers.
- Statewide permit pause: Under the Governor's Sept. 21 order halting permits sought by data centers (Governor's office), TCEQ sent its Oct. 19 compliance letter: it says permits for infrastructure directly supporting data centers are paused, pending applications are being screened, and claimed authorizations are suspended where possible (TCEQ letter). The Texas Tribune reported Oct. 20 that TCEQ says stormwater permits flagged by Public Citizen were suspended (Texas Tribune). On Oct. 21 TCEQ posted that its STEERS e-filing system for automatic authorizations is temporarily shut down so staff can check whether applications relate to data centers (TCEQ STEERS notice); the Texas Tribune reports a spokesman said applications must be physically provided (Texas Tribune, Oct. 21). The tracker doesn't show whether any project in La Salle County has a pending TCEQ permit.
- 2029: Phase 1 commercial operation, with the full facility online in stages by 2032, per the Commerce Department (Commerce Dept.). The companies say initial generation could begin as early as 2029, subject to permitting and approvals (company release).
Frequently asked questions
What data center projects are tracked in La Salle County, Texas? One: Project Star energy campus and adjacent Related Digital data center campus in Encinal, listed as announced.
What is Project Star? A planned $22.3B, 6,472 MW natural gas power facility in Encinal to supply co-located data centers, per the U.S. Commerce Department (Commerce Dept.). The companies say it would power a Related Digital data center campus of up to 5 GW on an adjacent site (company release); that figure is a company claim.
When would Project Star start operating? The Commerce Department gives Phase 1 commercial operation in 2029 and the full facility in stages by 2032 (Commerce Dept.). The companies say initial generation could begin as early as 2029, subject to permitting (company release).
Has La Salle County approved Project Star? No local action is recorded. As of Oct. 6, 2026, no Project Star item was found in county or Encinal agendas reviewed.
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