- Project Owner
- Microsoft Corporation
- Docket Number
- 19-SPPE-04
- Capacity
- 99 MW
- Location
- San Jose
- Technology
- Backup Generating System
- Project Status
- Exempted
- Project Type
- Small Power Plant Exemption
Microsoft Corporation proposes to construct and operate the San Jose Data Center (project) located at 1657 Alviso-Milpitas Road in San Jose, California. The project would consist of two single-story data center buildings with approximately 396,914 gross square feet of administrative and data center space. The maximum electrical load of the project would be up to 99 megawatts (MW), although the estimated load would be 77 MW inclusive of information technology (IT) equipment, ancillary electrical/telecommunications equipment, and other electrical loads (administrative, heat rejection, and safety/security). To provide reliable operation of the project in the event of loss of electrical service from the local electric utility provider, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), the project includes 224 0.45 MW renewable natural gas generators to provide electrical power to support the data center uses during utility outages, certain onsite electrical equipment interruptions or failure, and for load shedding, demand response and behind -the -meter resource adequacy ancillary services. In addition, the project includes two Tier 4 compliant diesel administrative generators with a 1.25 MW for the northern building and 0.5 MW for the southern building. The project would also include an onsite 115-kilovolt (kV) substation with two 115-kV electrical supply lines that would connect to PG&E’s Los Esteros Substation, located adjacent to the site. The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires the lead agency to consider the whole of the action; therefore, the Energy Commission will include the entire data center project in its analysis, which includes the construction of the data center buildings along with the installation and operation of the generators and any associated utility connection facilities.
Presiding Member: Patty Monahan, Commissioner
Associate Member: Kourtney Vaccaro, Commissioner
Hearing Officer: Caryn Holmes and Deborah Dyer
February 19, 2021, Public Scoping Meeting San Jose Data Center
May 18, 2022, Prehearing Conference - San Jose City Backup Generation Facility
May 26, 2022, Evidentiary Hearing - San Jose City Backup Generation Facility
July 13, 2022, Energy Commission Business Meeting
- 11/15/2019 - Small Power Plant Exemption (SPPE) filed
- 12/23/2021 - Staff’s Draft Environmental Impact Report filed (comment period ends February 7, 2022)
- 2/28/2022 - San Jose Data Center Final EIR- Part 1 and San Jose Data Center Final EIR- Part 2 filed.
- 3/29/2022 - Addendum to the Final Environmental Impact Report Part 1 for the San Jose Data Center SPPE Proceeding and San Jose Data Center Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program filed.
- 4/7/2022 - Staff's Opening Testimony with Declarations and Resumes for the San Jose Data Center SPPE Proceeding filed.
- 5/5/2022 - City of San Jose Concurrence to MMRP for San Jose Data Center EIR filed.
- 7/1/2022 - Committee Proposed Decision - Part 1 and Committee Proposed Decision - Part 2 filed.
- 7/14/2022 - Adoption Order on Committee Proposed Decision filed.
- 7/18/2022 Notice of Determination for San Jose Data Center and Environmental Document Filing Fees Cash Receipt filed.
Small Power Plant Exemption
The CEC Small Power Plant Exemption (SPPE) process allows applicants proposing thermal power plants between 50 and 100 MW to obtain an exemption from the CEC’s jurisdiction and proceed with local permitting rather than requiring CEC certification. The CEC can grant an exemption if it finds that the proposed facility will not create a substantial adverse impact on the environment or energy resources. These facilities were exempted from the CEC’s jurisdiction.
Contacts
Project Manager
STEPsiting@energy.ca.gov
(Please enter project name in the email subject line)
Public Participation Questions
Public Advisor
publicadvisor@energy.ca.gov
916-269-9595
Media Inquiries
Media & Public Communications Office
mediaoffice@energy.ca.gov
916-654-4989