VoltaGrid construction site, adjacent to the Severfarm data center, top, in Covington, GA. June 25, 2026.

The VoltaGrid construction site, adjacent to the Severfarm data center (top) is seen in Covington, Ga., June 25, 2026.

Credit: © Michael A. Schwarz

Georgia environmental regulators said a company installing natural gas-based electrical generation for a Newton County data center has likely violated state air quality rules and must pause construction for now. 

Texas-based VoltaGrid says it offers electricity solutions for data centers so they don’t have to wait on slow-moving utility companies. Companies Blackstone and Halliburton invested a billion dollars in the company this year.  

Last November, VoltaGrid requested a permit from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division to install 33 carbon emitting natural gas engines to power a data center in Covington, in Newton County. Together, they could power around 70,000 homes.  

The so-called reciprocal internal combustion engines, or RICE, are typically relied on for back-up power in the event of a power outage, but at the Serverfarm data center in Newton County, the intent is to rely on generators which operate a lot like the gas engine of a car for all the electricity, all the time.  

Now, eight of the planned 33 generators have been installed at the site despite the fact that Georgia EPD has yet to permit the construction.  

That was pointed out to James Boylan, Chief of the Air Protection Branch of Georgia EPD, in a June 25 letter from the Southern Environmental Law Center on behalf of the Altamaha Riverkeeper and a local environmental group called Sustainable Newton. The SELC letter includes documentary photos of the eight gas engines.  

The eight of 33 planned natural gas generators at the Covington Serverfarm data center.

The eight of 33 planned natural gas generators at the Covington Serverfarm data center are photographed in June 2026.

Credit: © Michael A. Schwarz

A week later, the EPD sent its own letter.  

In its letter to VoltaGrid, the EPD said the agency had confirmed the assertions made in the SELC letter and that VoltaGrid has likely violated Georgia clean air rules by building out pollution-emitting infrastructure without state permission.  

The letter warned VoltaGrid it runs the risk of monetary penalties if it continued the work. The company has until mid-July to explain its actions.  

Attempts to reach VoltaGrid for comment were unsuccessful.  

Tags: covington  data centers  climate change  carbon dioxide  electricity  Georgia  GPB News