A project that could see the building of nearly 60 individual data centers in the Arizona desert has advanced an important step with a vote by the Pinal County Planning and Zoning Committee.
Members of that committee, in a 7 to 2 vote, have approved a rezoning of the site, which is located off the Picacho Highway some 50 miles to the south of Phoenix.
The project belongs to the Phoenix-based land development company Vermaland, which has envisioned building the centers on a 3,000-acre site and has estimated that the proposed La Osa Energy Center could cost up to $33 billion to complete.
When originally announced last summer, Kuldip Verma, chief executive officer of Vermaland, said the development will position Arizona to “capture a meaningful share of the AI infrastructure boom.”
Verma added that “with power costs significantly below California and growing tech company demand, we’re creating the next generation of digital infrastructure.”
Besides the data center construction, plans call for the site to see the building of two gas-fired plants and battery storage systems.
Earlier reports indicated that La Osa Energy Center could support up to 3 gigawatts of capacity, representing a power potential greater than that of all of metro Phoenix.
The rezoning request for the site must now be reviewed and approved by the Pinal County Board of Supervisors.
Established in 2006, Vermaland has a portfolio of more than 25,000 acres and has thus far been involved in the development of just under twenty solar farm sites.
April 21, 2026
By Garry Boulard
