US datacenter buildout faces modest delays despite over 300 local moratoriums
Analysis shows that only about 1.5 GW of planned capacity is genuinely delayed by local and state restrictions, while overall US datacenter construction is expected to more than double in 2027.
Four states have recently taken action on datacenter projects: New York halted new environmental permits, Texas paused its ERCOT interconnection queue, Pennsylvania made permits conditional on new guardrails, and Oregon froze deals on state land. At the local level, more than 300 municipalities, counties and townships have adopted moratoriums or bans in the past 18 months.
Despite the headline-grabbing count of restrictions, a project-by-project analysis by SemiAnalysis estimates that only roughly 2.3 GW of capacity is at risk, with about 1.5 GW actually delayed by local moratoriums. The three projects most affected are an AWS campus in Ohio, a powered-land developer site in Pennsylvania, and a Colorado location. New York’s executive order touches about 1.4 GW, but only 0.8 GW faces a meaningful delay.
The firm’s Datacenter Industry Model still forecasts 38 GW of IT capacity to be delivered in the United States in 2027, more than double the 2026 figure, with 22 GW under vertical construction and the remainder financed and in site-work stages. Texas’ pause adds a few months of administrative delay for grid-connected projects, but behind-the-meter (BtM) development is accelerating, offsetting any slowdown.
SemiAnalysis notes that counting moratoriums is a poor proxy for delayed megawatts because many restrictions apply only to new applications, expire before projects need approval, or can be circumvented through redesign, relocation or legal challenges. Only when a moratorium meets all criteria—covering the exact parcel, remaining in force, overlapping the project timeline, and blocking a required permit—does it translate into a real delay.
The analysis also highlights political dynamics: local moratoriums provide elected officials a low-cost way to address community concerns ahead of the 2026 elections, while statewide legislation remains rare. Overall, the data suggest that while opposition is growing, its impact on the near-term datacenter buildout is limited.