Michigan
DataCentersExposed tracks 50 AI data centers in Michigan — 4 operating and 16 in the pipeline — across 15 counties, drawing 5.8 GW of reported power demand from 5 tracked corporate operators. Michigan's data-center tax break is projected to cost the state $1.1M in forgone revenue in FY2023.
Sources: Methodology, Coverage scorecard
Reporting by Eric Keller · Updated May 29, 2026
Michigan at a glance
The largest footprint in Michigan belongs to Microsoft Corporation, behind 4 tracked facilities. EdgeConneX, Inc., Alphabet Inc., and Cogent Communications round out the most active operators in the state. Many of these sites are filed under shell or project names rather than the parent's — our operator column resolves them back to the real corporate parent wherever the chain is documented.
Geographically, the buildout clusters: Wayne County leads Michigan with 5 facilities and a composite risk score of 8/100. Oakland County and Eaton County follow. Our county risk score weights project exposure (40%), power demand (30%), water draw (15%), and land footprint (15%); the full breakdown is shown on each county page.
Michigan is not done growing. 16 facilities are in the pipeline — proposed, permitted, or under construction — which is where residents still have a say at zoning hearings and in rate cases. Each pending project is a decision about land, water, electricity prices, and tax revenue that hasn't been finalized.
We also surface the accountability trail: 8 state bills mentioning data centers and 6 recent news items are tracked for Michigan below, pulled from LegiScan and GDELT and refreshed automatically. Legislation is linked to the counties and operators it names; news is classified by community sentiment.
2035 Buildout Outlook
Under the model's moderate-growth scenario (5%/yr annual load growth), PNNL's IM3 model sites about 1 standardized 36 MW campus in Michigan by 2035 — roughly 36 MW of new electricity demand and ~35 M gal/yr of cooling water. Under the higher-growth scenario (15%/yr) that climbs to 6 campuses (216 MW). For scale, we currently track 50 real data centers in Michigan (5.8 GW of reported power).
- Moderate growth136 MW · ~35 M gal/yr cooling water
- High growth3108 MW · ~104 M gal/yr cooling water
- Higher growth6216 MW · ~209 M gal/yr cooling water
The model assigns ~100% of these campuses' cooling to evaporative water cooling in Michigan (the rest to mechanical/air cooling), a split it derives from local water stress and wet-bulb temperature.
These are modeled candidate sites, not announced or permitted facilities. PNNL's IM3 model places identical 36 MW unit-campuses at feasible locations under each scenario — it shows where demand could concentrate, never a specific parcel. Figures use a market-gravity weight of 50. How the model works.
Top operators in Michigan
The taxpayer price tag
“Exhibit 5, Consumption Tax Expenditures, Sales and Use Tax Expenditures (FY 2023, $000): 'Data Centers 1,060'. The report states each figure is an 'estimate of the cost (in terms of foregone revenue).'”
Program-wide cost of Michigan's data-center tax incentive(s), reported by the state — not attributable to a single facility. “Proj” = the state's own forward estimate; all other figures are realized/audited. Each links to its primary source.
Per-deal tax breaks on record
- Michigan Renaissance Zone1×
Specific incentive records we have matched in Michigan (state certified-exemption lists, agreements, and disclosures) — most have no public per-site dollar value, so a count is shown rather than an invented figure.
County risk leaderboard
| County | Facilities | Pipeline | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne County | 5 | 1 | 8 |
| Oakland County | 5 | 3 | 6 |
| Eaton County | 2 | — | 6 |
| Macomb County | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Kent County | 5 | 4 | — |
| Washtenaw County | 4 | 4 | — |
| Kalamazoo County | 2 | 1 | — |
| Allegan County | 1 | 1 | — |
| Livingston County | 1 | — | — |
| Ingham County | 1 | — | — |
| Monroe County | 1 | — | — |
| Cass County | 1 | — | — |
Pipeline & proposals
- Proposed1.0 GWPanattoni Project CannoliAlphabet Inc. · Wayne County
- Proposed100 MWSouthfield Data CenterMetrobloks · Oakland County
- Proposed1 MWHarbor Farmz Data CenterOperator unknown · Kalamazoo County
- ProposedAlterra Development Corporation Data CenterAlterra Development · Calhoun County
- ProposedLyon Township Data CenterOperator unknown · Oakland County
- ProposedMicrosoft Caledonia Data CenterMicrosoft Corporation · Kent County