Data Center Registry
Lea County Data Center
Lovington, Lea County, New Mexico
Lea County Data Center is a proposed data center in Lovington, New Mexico (Lea County), operated by New Era Energy & Digital, Inc. The public record puts it at 7 GW planned, 3,500 acres.
Every line on this page traces to a public source listed at the bottom. Where a figure was looked for and not found, the row says so. A blank is never a zero.
Facility record
Proposed
- Operator
- New Era Energy & Digital, Inc.
- Facility type
- Data center, AI use confirmed
- Location
- Lovington, Lea County, NM
- Coordinates
- 32.7000, -103.3000 (approximate)
- Power capacity
- 7 GW planned
- Land
- 3,500 acres
- Investment
- Not established from a public source
- Announced
- Not established from a public source
- Utility
- Not established from a public source
- Power source
- Mixed
- On site generation
- 7 GW
- Cooling
- Not established from a public source
- Water use
- Not established from a public source
- Jobs
- Not established from a public source
- Public subsidy
- Not established from a public source
- Community reception
- No reception on record
- Source confidence
- Reported by at least one credible outlet or filing
Timeline from the record
Newest first. Record entries come from the filings and reports the registry cites. Coverage entries are headlines from publisher feeds we monitor daily, linked to the outlet; last checked September 14, 2026.
- 2026ProposedSigned land-option for approximately 3,500 acres; gas (over 2GW) plus nuclear (5GW+) powered; first power targeted 2028; pre-construction. Source: Data Center Dynamics
Opposition and litigation at this site
Nothing on record as of September 3, 2026. No lawsuit, organized opposition, or contested hearing over Lea County Data Center in Lovington, Lea County, New Mexico appears in the sources this registry tracks. That is an absence in our sources rather than a finding that none exists, and local opposition often predates any coverage a national dataset would pick up.
If you live near this site and something is happening that this page does not show, that is worth telling us. Send us the document and it goes in the record with the source attached. For sites where opposition is already established, see every contested site we track.
Power and water
Announced November 6, 2025: more than 2 GW of on-site natural gas-fired generation plus 5 GW or more of nuclear planned to energize the 3,500-acre Lea County site. First generation, likely from new gas-fired units, is expected in 2028; New Era says gas availability is confirmed and that it is in the final stages of technology selection for the nuclear component.
Notes on the record
Land-option signed for approximately 3,500 acres near Lovington. Gas (>2GW) plus nuclear (5GW+) powered. First power targeted 2028; still pre-construction.
What the record does not establish, and the document that would
In every fight on our tracker the decisive fact came out of a public records request. These are the requests for this site.
- Cooling method and water use
- Tax abatements or other public subsidy
- Permanent jobs promised
- How the community has received it
- Which utility serves it
Which document closes each gap
- Cooling method and water use
- The water service agreement, any groundwater appropriation permit, and the mechanical narrative in the site plan.
- Tax abatements or other public subsidy
- The abatement, PILOT, or development agreement approved by the county, city, or development authority, and the state's data center sales tax exemption certificate if one was issued.
- Permanent jobs promised
- The economic development application or incentive agreement, which usually states a job commitment and a clawback.
- How the community has received it
- Planning commission and governing body minutes, public comment records, and any petition or lawsuit filed in the county.
- Which utility serves it
- The electric service agreement or the utility's filing with the state public utility commission.
Have one of these documents? Send it to us and we will add it to the record with attribution.
Questions people ask about this site
Is there opposition to the Lea County Data Center in Lovington?
Nothing on record as of September 3, 2026. No lawsuit, organized opposition, or contested hearing over Lea County Data Center in Lovington, Lea County, New Mexico appears in the sources this registry tracks. That is an absence in our sources rather than a finding that none exists, and local opposition often predates any coverage a national dataset would pick up.
Has anyone filed a lawsuit over the Lea County Data Center?
No lawsuit over Lea County Data Center appears in the record we track as of September 3, 2026. Residents most often reach a lawyer over water supply, well drawdown, noise from cooling plant, property value, or a rezoning approved without the notice the ordinance required. If any of that is happening near this site, it is worth a review whether or not a case has been filed yet.
How much water does Lea County Data Center use?
No water withdrawal figure for Lea County Data Center is on record here. Water use is rarely published voluntarily; it usually surfaces through a utility service agreement or a state withdrawal permit, both of which are public records. We leave the number blank rather than estimate one.
Who operates Lea County Data Center, and how big is it?
New Era Energy & Digital, Inc. is the operator on record. Capacity on record is 7 GW. The site is recorded at 3500 acres.
How to cite this page
SueDataCenters.org Data Center Registry, "Lea County Data Center," updated September 3, 2026, https://suedatacenters.org/data-centers/new-era-energy-digital-lea-county-data-center-nm.
Facility data from Compute Atlas (E. Kubiak), version 1.32.0 (September 7, 2026), licensed CC BY 4.0, record https://www.compute-atlas.com/facilities/new-era-energy-digital-lea-county-data-center-nm, retrieved September 14, 2026.
Corrections with a public source are welcome at the Compute Atlas record or through our contact page. The whole registry is available as CSV and JSON under CC BY 4.0.
Sources for this record
As compiled and cited by Compute Atlas, with our own reporting appended. Archived links are used where the original has moved.
- 1.New Era plans 7GW AI data center in Lea County, New Mexico · Data Center Dynamics · retrieved July 17, 2026
- 2.New Era Lea County data center coverage · Albuquerque Journal · retrieved July 17, 2026
- 3.Nuclear, Natural Gas Power Generation Planned for Massive New Mexico Data Center Site · POWER Magazine · retrieved August 8, 2026
- 4.New Era Energy & Digital - Lea County, New Mexico Project · Baxtel · retrieved September 3, 2026
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