Posted on Friday, July 18, 2025
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by Outside Contributor
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President Donald Trump seized the opportunity to make his pitch to Pennsylvania on Tuesday when he announced more than $90 billion in energy and tech investments coming to the Keystone State.
“This is a really triumphant day for people of the commonwealth and the United States,” proclaimed Trump.
“With that historic announcement and the new commitments being made today, we’re building a future where American workers will forge the steel, produce the energy, build the factories, and really run a country like, I believe, like this country has never been run before,” the president added.
Trump announced the investments alongside political ally U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) at the freshman senator’s inaugural Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit at Carnegie Mellon University. They presented the economic package as “promises kept” from the 2024 campaign, when both Republicans carried the commonwealth by narrow margins.
The largest investment came from Blackstone, which plans a $25 billion data center and energy infrastructure development in Northeast Pennsylvania. It’s part of a joint venture with PPL Corporation to build out Pennsylvania’s digital and energy infrastructure, including natural gas power plants.
Those plants will be right next to the data centers they’re meant to power.
“That’s really the special sauce here, being able to put these things together,” said Jon Gray, Blackstone President and Chief Operating Officer, during a panel discussion on AI investment.
Gray said it’s very logical to build power plants near data centers because of how difficult it is to build transmission lines and pipelines. “If we can do the two in one place, that’s the advantage here.”
Blackstone is confident the initial $25 billion will lead to an additional $60 billion investment in the commonwealth.
PPL Corporation announced a second investment of $6.8 billion through 2028 to expand grid capacity and modernize transmission lines in multiple counties. That was music to the ears of the energy infrastructure regulators, who’ve been warning Pennsylvania’s current grid is not prepared for the demands of the future.
PPL President and CEO Vincent Sorgi said the joint venture with Blackstone is needed because of concerns from PJM Interconnection, which operates the commonwealth’s power grid, about grid stability. Sorgi promised the new plants will help lower energy bills and directly support economic development.
Blackstone and PPL have set a 10-year timeline to finish the project. It will create or support more than 6,000 jobs.
Natural gas advocates hailed the new agreement as proof that the ‘all-of-the-above’ energy strategy works for the environment, the economy, and prevents China from getting the lead in the AI race.
“Winning this race is a matter of national security, and with clean and abundant Pennsylvania-produced natural gas, we can also continue to protect and enhance our environment while creating good-paying tech, building trades, and energy jobs,” said Jim Welty, president of the Marcellus Shale Coalition.
Big Tech companies also plan large buildouts in the Keystone State.
Google announced a plan to build more than $25 billion in data centers and AI facilities across Pennsylvania.
To power the centers, Google reached a $3 billion, 20-year investment deal with Brookfield Asset Management to modernize two hydropower plants in Lancaster County. The Holdwood and Safe Harbor hydroelectric facilities are expected to help Google power its operations using carbon-free energy.
“Hydropower is a proven, low-cost technology, offering dependable, homegrown, carbon-free electricity that creates jobs and builds a stronger grid for all,” said Amanda Peterson Corio, head of Data Center Energy from Google.
Taylor Millard writes about politics and public policy.
Reprinted with Permission from DC Journal – By Taylor Millard
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AMAC or AMAC Action.
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