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Tag: Amazon Web Services

As data centers grow, Amazon and Dominion explore small nuclear reactors

With power consumption by data centers and AI projected to more than quadruple in Virginia in the next 15 years, Amazon.com and Dominion Energy Virginia have entered into an agreement to explore potential development of small modular nuclear reactors at North Anna Power Plant in Louisa County, the two companies announced at an event Wednesday at Amazon’s HQ2 East Coast headquarters in Arlington County.

Dominion and Amazon’s memorandum of understanding means the companies will “jointly explore innovative ways to advance SMR development and financing while also mitigating potential cost and development risks for customers and capital providers,” according to Dominion’s announcement.

“This is a milestone along the path,” Amazon Web Services CEO Matt Garman said at Wednesday’s event. “There’s a ton that we need to do between here and there, and there’s a lot of work that needs to go into this, but this is a really important milestone that we’re celebrating today.”

At Wednesday morning’s event, Gov. Glenn Youngkin, U.S. Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner and Dominion Energy Virginia President Ed Baine were on hand, among other state and national dignitaries.

“I am thrilled that Virginia is among the first states to take this big step,” Youngkin said. “Just two-and-a-half years ago, Virginia was literally accelerating on what has been an uninterrupted renaissance in growth, job growth and investment by companies who’ve committed $83 billion to expand or come to Virginia, and hire more people than we’ve ever had working before in the history of the commonwealth.”

He noted that the state is “poised to take this giant step with our partners,” as home to the nuclear Navy, multiple research universities and Dominion.

In his comments, Kaine also mentioned Lynchburg-based nuclear fuel producer BWX Technologies and Framatome Inc., the North American subsidiary of the French nuclear equipment, services and fuel producer, as other significant players in Virginia’s nuclear energy sector. “Amazon is the largest power user in the United States,” Kaine said. “That AWS is here, and that AWS is endeavoring to help us advance our innovation together with these other innovators in Virginia makes perfect sense.”

As of now, only two SMRs are in operation — one in Russia and the other in China — and Virginia likely won’t have its own SMR before the mid-2030s.

Warner, who chairs the Senate’s Select Committee on Intelligence, said Wednesday that energy innovation is important also as a matter of national security, particularly as the U.S. races to catch up with China’s innovations. “National security is not simply the nation state that has the most tanks and guns and ships and planes, but increasingly, it’s going to be who can win the battle in technology competition.” China, he added, is constructing “30 nuclear plants even as we speak. They have a goal of adding 150 more by 2035.”

However, he said, Virginia is “the nuclear capital for the country,” with 100,000 people already working in the nuclear sector in the commonwealth, including sailors, university researchers and employees at BWXT, Framatome, Huntington Ingalls Industries and other companies.

Ambitious plans

Amazon’s agreement with Dominion was just part of its news Wednesday, as the global e-tail giant announced it has signed three agreements to support development of small modular reactors, or SMRs, including one in the state of Washington with Energy Northwest, to develop four advanced SMRs. According to Amazon’s announcement, the four reactors would generate roughly 960 megawatts of electricity at full operation, beginning in the early 2030s. Amazon, which in March acquired a nuclear-powered data center campus in Pennsylvania from Talen Energy, also has committed to invest in SMR developer X-energy, whose reactor design will be used in the Energy Northwest project.

“Nuclear is a safe source of carbon-free energy that can help power our operations and meet the growing demands of our customers, while helping us progress toward our Climate Pledge commitment to be net-zero carbon across our operation by 2040,” Garman said in a statement released Wednesday morning.

Dominion previously announced in July that it had issued a request for proposals to evaluate the feasibility for a small nuclear reactor to be developed at its North Anna power plant, where it has two conventional, large nuclear reactors. Nuclear technology companies received the RFP, which was not a guarantee to build an SMR but would be the first step in exploring whether such a step was feasible, the Fortune 500 utility said in July.

On Wednesday, Dominion Energy Virginia’s Baine said that the “site is well on its way to be able to be developed,” and that he expects Dominion to make a decision on the winning proposal before the end of the year. He also said that X-energy is among the companies that have submitted a proposal.

The RFP, Baine added, will “inform us how we want to move forward with companies for additional small modular reactors as well.”

Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade Caren Merrick said Wednesday that she expects Youngkin to soon issue an executive order about accelerating permitting for nuclear sites, and the state has invited X-energy to come to Virginia for manufacturing.

Competitor Google preempted Amazon’s announcement by a day, announcing on Tuesday that the tech company had reached an agreement with Kairos Power to develop and purchase 500 megawatts of power from six to seven SMRs, planned to come online between 2030 and 2035. And in September, Microsoft forged a deal with Constellation Energy to offset power consumption by its data centers by reviving a portion of the Three Mile Island power plant, the Pennsylvania facility that in 1979 experienced a partial nuclear meltdown, the worst nuclear disaster in U.S. history.

Moving toward nuclear in Va.

Over the past couple of years, SMRs have been a big part of Virginia’s energy conversation, especially as data center growth has put more demands on the state’s power grid.

According to Dominion’s Integrated Resource Plan, filed Tuesday with the Virginia State Corporation Commission and the North Carolina Utilities Commission, power demand in Dominion’s coverage area in Virginia and North Carolina is expected to grow 5.5% annually over the next decade and double by 2039. Dominion has previously predicted that the data center industry in the state will demand 13 gigawatts of electricity by 2038, nearly five times the 2.8 gigawatts it used in 2023.

In Virginia, Amazon has agreed to explore the development of an SMR project near North Anna, bringing “at least 300 megawatts of power to the Virginia region, where Dominion projects that power demands will increase by 85% over the next 15 years,” according to Amazon’s news release. Additionally, Amazon signed an agreement to place a new data center next to a nuclear facility in Pennsylvania, a carbon-free energy source to power the data center.

In Loudoun County’s Ashburn area, where more than 70% of the world’s internet traffic courses through a corridor known as Data Center Alley, Amazon Web Services is the biggest fish in a gigantic pool. From 2011 to 2021, AWS invested more than $51.9 billion in Virginia, including building data centers. In January 2023, the company had at least 65 data centers in Loudoun in operation or under development, out of more than 200 data centers in the county, and AWS announced it planned to invest $35 billion by 2040 to build more data center campuses across the state.

Nationally, it’s anticipated that data centers will account for 17% of energy usage nationwide by 2030, according to a Bloomberg Intelligence report. That’s up from 4% in 2022 and 6% in 2026, according to data and projections from the International Energy Agency.

U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm, speaking at Wednesday’s event, called Virginia “the go-to place for the concentration of data centers,” and noted that AWS is the latest company to do “BYOP,” or “bring your own power” for data centers. “And this is the important piece I mentioned, that the technology companies know that in order for these data centers to achieve great community buy-in, bringing their own power with them is an important piece of that, so the rates are not raised on everyday citizens.”

She added that the Department of Energy is announcing $900 million in funding “for those who want to deploy even more … small modular reactors,” referring to applications opening for a program to support the first commercial-use SMR in the United States.

In the past couple of years, as artificial intelligence usage and overall digital use has grown, so has demand on Virginia’s power supply. In a May earnings call, Dominion Energy CEO Bob Blue said that the utility is receiving more requests to power larger data center campuses with larger energy demands of 60 to 90 megawatts per building, or several gigawatts for multibuilding campuses.

Baine said in an interview Wednesday that “there are a number of things that are driving energy demand within Virginia. Data centers [are] absolutely one of the big ones, but there’s also manufacturer electrification that is also increasing demand.”

The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) is conducting a study on data centers as some state legislators are pushing for high-volume power users to cover infrastructure costs to keep the state’s power grid reliable. The Virginia General Assembly forwarded all data center-related bills to 2025’s session so lawmakers could take JLARC’s study — expected to be released in November — into consideration.

Freelance writer Courtney Mabeus-Brown and Virginia Business Editor Richard Foster contributed to this story.

Federal Contractors | Technology 2023: MAX PETERSON

Peterson, who joined AWS in 2012 and started his current role in 2021, has more than 30 years of public sector experience, with stints at Dell and CDW-G. Now he’s guiding the $80.1 billion Amazon.com cloud subsidiary through a variety of high-tech federal projects.

So far, AWS landed a spot (along with Google, Microsoft and Oracle) in December 2022 on the Department of Defense’s $9 billion Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability contract. And AWS kicked off 2023 by announcing it plans to invest $35 billion by 2040 to add multiple data center campuses across Virginia, creating 1,000 jobs.

A two-time graduate of the University of Maryland, Peterson serves as co-chair of the Atlantic Council GeoTech Center, a nonpartisan think tank promoting technology and innovation. He also sits on the board of Halcyon, which funds social entrepreneurship ventures.

FIRST JOB: I worked at a pizza shop in high school and was a serial entrepreneur, starting three different businesses during my undergrad studies.

AWS reports it invested $51.9B in Va. from 2011-21

Amazon Web Services Inc. invested more than $51.9 billion in Virginia between 2011 and 2021, according to an economic impact statement released by the company Wednesday.

That investment total includes capital and operational expenditures in Virginia, including Loudoun, Fairfax and Prince William counties, AWS said. During that same period, the company has contributed an estimated $8.2 billion total gross domestic product in the state. In 2021, AWS employed about 8,710 full-time workers in roles including data center engineers and technicians, solutions architects, software engineers, business developers. That same year, about 11,180 full- and part-time highly skilled workers supported AWS construction, operations and maintenance on-site at AWS facilities in Virginia.

AWS is a subsidiary of Amazon.com Inc. and is the world’s largest cloud computing provider. Virginia became the home of AWS’ first data center in 2006; in 2022, the company paid more than $334 million in business personal property taxes in connection with its data centers. While the company would not disclose how many data centers it currently operates in Virginia, in January, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced that AWS plans to invest an additional $35 billion by 2040 to establish multiple data center campuses across the state and add 1,000 jobs.

Northern Virginia has long been the epicenter of the world’s data landscape. In 2022, the region accounted for 64% of the total new data center capacity brought online in primary markets across the U.S., according to the North American Data Center Trends Report by CBRE. More than 70% of the world’s internet traffic comes through Loudoun County’s Data Center Alley. 

Buddy Rizer, executive director of Loudoun’s economic development department, told Virginia Business that AWS is Loudoun’s largest data center operator. In January, AWS had at least 65 centers in operation or under development in the county, though Rizer could not provide an exact updated number Wednesday.

Loudoun has more than 200 data centers comprising more than 26 million square feet and at least 4 million more in development. Rizer estimated Loudoun’s data centers would contribute more than $700 million in local tax revenue in the county in 2023. In nearby Prince William County, which has become a new focus for data center construction, about 39 data centers total more than 6.9 million square feet with an additional 4.8 million square feet in development. Prince William’s data center tax revenues increased from $6.2 million in 2012 to $101.42 million in 2022.

In addition to its economic impact on the state, AWS announced initiatives around science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) education and workforce and job training, including for women in cloud technology. In October 2022, AWS opened its first East Coast-based skills center to provide free, in-person foundational courses on cloud computing. That location, in Arlington County, is near the company’s East Coast headquarters, HQ2, which recently started opening to employees at the end of May.

Amazon Web Services to invest $35B in Va. data center campuses

Amazon Web Services plans to invest $35 billion by 2040 to establish multiple data center campuses across Virginia, creating 1,000 jobs, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Friday.

Youngkin’s office said in a news release that “numerous localities in the commonwealth are under consideration” for the campuses, and specific sites “will be decided at a later date.”

AWS established its first data centers and operations facilities in Virginia in 2006. AWS has invested $35 billion in Virginia between 2011 and 2020, according to an economic impact study released by the company. It has 8,800 full-time AWS employees, as of Sept. 2021, the study says, but in total supported 13,500 jobs through data center construction and operation. It built a new corporate office in Fairfax County in 2017 and opened the first office in Amazon.com Inc’s new HQ2 East Coast headquarters, in Arlington, in 2019, according to the study.

AWS added 1,400 new full-time positions in 2021 and more than 1,000 contract-based data center roles in areas including security, facility maintenance, electrical and mechanical contracting, according to the study.

“AWS has a significant presence in Virginia, and we are excited that AWS has chosen to continue their growth and expand their footprint across the commonwealth,” Youngkin said in a statement. “Virginia will continue to encourage the development of this new generation of data center campuses across multiple regions of the commonwealth. These areas offer robust utility infrastructure, lower costs, great livability, and highly educated workforces and will benefit from the associated economic development and increased tax base, assisting the schools and providing services to the community.”

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with the General Assembly’s Major Employment and Investment (MEI) Project Approval Commission to secure the AWS expansion for Virginia.

Pending General Assembly approval, the commonwealth is developing a new state Mega Data Center Incentive Program, which AWS would be eligible for. The program would include an up to 15-year extension of data center sales and use tax exemptions on qualifying equipment and enabling software. Also subject to General Assembly approval, AWS would be eligible to receive an MEI custom performance grant of up to $140 million, including site and infrastructure improvements, workforce development and other project-related costs.

The issue of data centers and their locations have become a controversial topic in recent years. Legislation proposed by Del. Danica Roem, D-Manassas, seeks to slow or stop the proposed Digital Gateway in Prince William County, while a joint resolution filed by state Sen. Chap Petersen, D-Fairfax, asks the state’s Department of Energy to study the impacts of data centers on the commonwealth, including how they affect the economy, energy and climate change, WTOP reported. In Fauquier County, residents have fought a proposed 220,000-square-foot AWS data center, citing noise concerns. A public hearing and a vote on the matter is set for Feb. 14, according to the Fauquier Times.

In Loudoun County alone, AWS has 65 data centers in operation or in development.

“It’s always great news to see the commonwealth invest in great businesses and in our most important industries. Amazon Web Services has been actively investing in Loudoun for more than a decade and is one of our largest taxpayers,” Buddy Rizer, executive director for Loudoun County’s economic development department, said in a statement. “Importantly, they are also one of our most active corporate citizens, making major investments in our school system, Northern Virginia Community College and in other important social initiatives in the county. We’re proud to say that Northern Virginia is home to more AWS facilities than anywhere in the world, with more than 65 data centers in operation or in development in Loudoun alone. To see their continued growth in our county and throughout Virginia is great for everyone involved.”

AWS teaches cloud skills in Arlington

Christie Bibbs already works in the tech industry as a systems engineer, but she wanted to add cloud computing tools to her abilities.

Through the Black Women in Tech Facebook group, Bibbs learned about Amazon Web Services Inc.’s new Arlington-based Skills Center and signed up for a three-part cloud practitioner course. During the free, in-person classes, Bibbs learned the fundamentals of cloud computing, including more about AWS products and services, as well as compliance with data and security controls. This month, she plans to take an exam to become an AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner, taking the first step toward her goal of becoming a cloud solutions architect.

“Our clients need various solutions, depending on what they’re trying to do,” says Bibbs, who works in Columbia, Maryland, for defense contractor TransTechSol LLC. “Taking these classes will help me advise them a little bit better.”

Opened in October 2022 near parent company Amazon.com Inc.’s HQ2 East Coast headquarters, the 10,000-square-foot AWS Skills Center includes classrooms and interactive exhibits that demonstrate cloud computing in real time, including a miniature smart home. The Arlington location is the second AWS Skills Center; its first opened in Seattle in November 2021. Both offer free, in-person foundational courses on cloud computing and are a piece of Amazon’s larger goal to provide free digital skills training to more than 29 million people worldwide by 2025.

Russ Cowley, global head of AWS Skills Centers, said the Seattle location has trained “thousands” of people. The centers are meant as launchpads for tech careers, and AWS is targeting “anyone who is new to the cloud,” including underrepresented communities and people seeking to change industries, Cowley says.

Additional courses on foundational topics in cloud computing are planned, and the center will also work with employers and local organizations for networking and career placement events. AWS is already working with Consult Lemonade, a nonprofit that works to connect underrepresented communities in the Washington, D.C., region with career opportunities. AWS partnered with the group to offer a hybrid cloud computing course that started in December 2022.

Bibb says she prefers face-to-face learning and the opportunity to meet other professionals.

“I might even have a nice little study group forming of people who, like me, are trying to learn so that we can move forward in our careers,” she says.

AWS boosts women-led startups

Nessle co-founder and CEO Carly Buxton and her chief technology officer have passed up salaries and dipped into their savings to keep the Richmond-based tech business running since its 2019 launch.

The Nessle platform connects new parents with real-time tailored support. To keep Nessle running, Buxton applied for grants and participated in two previous accelerators. Now, she hopes that Nessle’s inclusion in Amazon Web Services’ Impact Accelerator for Women Founders will provide the startup with a needed boost.

Nessle and Alexandria-based Cleare, which started out developing software to consolidate state and local daycare compliance regulations into an interactive dashboard, were among 25 women-led startups announced in September that won spots in the AWS accelerator’s second cohort. More than 1,200 companies applied. The accelerator’s first cohort, announced in June, focused on Black founders; the third cohort, for LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs, will be announced in early 2023.

For the second cohort, companies had to be more than 51% women-led, with a CEO and CTO. They must also have a launched or fully developed product, be fewer than 5 years old and have raised no more than $500,000 from investors. Participants receive $125,000 cash and $100,000 in credits for AWS’ cloud computing platform.

The accelerator began Oct. 3 in Seattle with a week of training for CEOs and CTOs on topics including customer growth, product road mapping and storytelling.

It culminates in an investor pitch event Dec. 9 in San Francisco. In between, the cohort participated in remote workshops two to three times a week for up to six hours. Businesses also heard from investors and successful company founders and were matched with technical and business mentors. They also can book time with other experts.

Through the accelerator, Buxton has been able to work on upping Nessle’s game in cybersecurity, branding and social media, and pitching to investors. “We’re [also] really exploring … trying to develop a partnership playbook and what that looks like for us,” Buxton says. 

Cleare co-founder and CEO Tisia X.V. Saffold started her company with the goal of expanding the platform to assist other industries beyond child care. AWS’ accelerator has allowed Cleare to test and build its product. Saffold says it also sharpened her thinking about her customers, their behaviors and her go-to-market strategies.

“It really has just given us a lot of cushion to be able to spread our wings,” Saffold says

Elizabeth River Crossings CEO announces retirement

Elizabeth River Crossings OpCo LLC (ERC) CEO David Sullivan announced his retirement, effective Jan. 21. ERC finances, operates and maintains the Elizabeth River Tunnels.

A new CEO will be named next week.

ERC owners Abertis Infraestructuras S.A. and Manulife Investment Management named Sullivan CEO in January 2021. He had previously served as director of revenue, during which time he had helped transition ERC from a construction project to an operating company.

In his nearly five-year tenure with ERC, Sullivan helped upgrade the intelligent transportation systems, spearheading the migration of ERC’s tolling data from a primary data center in Portsmouth to a cloud-based platform developed by Cognizant and Amazon Web Services.

Sullivan oversaw several corporate citizenship efforts in his year as CEO. ERC received the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association’s 2021 Social Responsibility Award. In November 2021, ERC announced it will contribute $3.2 million annually in toll relief funds, with a 3.5% increase each year, to provide 50% toll discounts to eligible Norfolk and Portsmouth residents.

In his 50-year career, Sullivan served 32 years with the city of Virginia Beach, six years with Hampton Roads Transit and six years with the city of Norfolk.

“It has been a fantastic journey filled with extraordinary leaders, mentors and coworkers. I will miss it,” Sullivan said in a statement.

ERC is the operator of the Downtown and Midtown tunnels that run between Norfolk and Portsmouth. The company operates four tunnels and a highway in the Norfolk area, and its transportation infrastructure is used by more than 100,000 vehicles for daily commutes.

Teresa Carlson leaves Amazon Web Services

Teresa Carlson, the Herndon-based executive who founded Amazon Web Services’ public sector business, is leaving Amazon.com Inc.’s cloud computing subsidiary to become president and chief growth officer of Splunk Inc., the San Francisco tech company announced today.

Carlson was an influential and visible presence in the Washington, D.C., region for a little more than a decade in her role as vice president of worldwide sector and industries at AWS. She previously served as an executive at Microsoft.

Carlson’s former boss, Andy Jassy, was tapped to replace Jeff Bezos as CEO of Amazon in February. That led to some speculation that Carlson could be an internal candidate to become CEO of AWS. But Jassy announced in March that Tableau CEO Adam Selipsky was taking the job.

With Carlson moving to the data management and cloud services company Splunk, her replacement will be Max Peterson, currently vice president of the public sector’s international business, an AWS spokesperson confirmed.

Carlson’s will start her newly created role at Splunk effective April 19. The company says she will be responsible for driving go-to-market business segments, advancing cloud-first initiatives, accelerating growth and pursuing new market opportunities.

Splunk reported revenue of $2.23 billion last fiscal year — $554 million of which was attributable to cloud revenue, an increase of 77% from the previous fiscal year. Splunk’s customers include Tide, Lockheed Martin Space, California Pizza Kitchen, The New York City Fire Department and the U.S. Census Bureau.

“Together,” Carlson said in a statement, “we will build on Splunk’s legacy of innovation as one of the fastest growing companies in the history of enterprise software.”

Regarding Carlson’s departure, an AWS spokesperson said in an email, “We’re really proud about the work Teresa has done to help public sector customers around the world reimagine digital transformation and achieve mission success, and we wish her the best moving forward.”

Herndon office buildings acquired near Amazon Web Services

A joint venture between Washington, D.C.-based real estate company Goodstone LLC and New York City-based investment company Waterfall Asset Management secured $49.625 million in debt financing from Bridge Investment Group LLC to acquire and renovate two office buildings in Herndon adjacent to Amazon Web Services’ East Coast headquarters.

The Northridge I and II buildings, two separate but contiguous properties, are a combined 258,452 square feet. The six-story buildings are nearly identical, with each floor being roughly 22,000 square feet in rectangular layouts.

Tenants include the U.S. Small Business Administration, Spaceflight Industries Inc., Discover Technologies LLC and B3 Group Inc.

Executive Vice President Terry Reiley and Vice President Caroline Bour of Los Angeles-based real estate company CBRE will handle the leasing of the buildings.

Although an exact timeline for the project has not been determined, the companies are estimating that it will take 12 months to complete renovations once the project starts.

The acquisition loan, which was completed in late December, was structured by Bethesda, Maryland-based Phillips Realty Capital and includes funding for 100% of Goodstone’s plans to combine the properties. Currently, the properties are jointly 85% leased.

Phillips Realty Capital has Virginia offices in Alexandria, Charlottesville and Henrico County. The deal was led by principals John Sieber in Bethesda and David Foulk from the firm’s Charlottesville office.

A Cushman & Wakefield team led by Drew Flood, executive managing director, and Shaun Collins, senior associate, represented the seller of the Northridge I building. Bill Prutting, managing director, and Jim Molloy, senior vice president, with Jones Lang LaSalle represented the seller of Northridge II.

Danville Community College hosts advanced fiber optic training

Danville Community College hosted a fusion splicing training and networking event on Dec. 9 and Dec. 10 with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Sumitomo Electric Lightwave for approximately 30 people, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday.

Fusion splicing is the joining of two optical fibers to create a continuous light path, carrying data to phones, internet and television. With technical jobs such as fusion splicing being in high demand — especially in Virginia where data centers are plentiful — the training addresses workforce needs, said Virginia Economic Development Partnership President and CEO Stephen Moret in a statement.

“Providing access to training on cutting-edge technology is critical in our competitive global economy, and we thank AWS and Sumitomo for providing the Fusion Splicing Certificate Course to Southern Virginia’s workforce,” Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade Brian Ball said. “Partnerships like these will help the commonwealth reach its goal to have the best labor pool in the nation.”

AWS creates fiber optic products and solutions while Sumitomo Electric is a fiber optic cable manufacturer offering a variety of advanced products in ribbon technology, air-blown fiber, fusion splicing and connectivity solutions. Together, the two companies are hosting courses at local community colleges across the nation.

“Technicians skilled in using cutting-edge machines such as the mass fusion splicer will be prepared to perform the critical jobs building the infrastructure needed to wire the country for the digital world,” said Michael Punke, AWS vice president of global public policy.

The course focuses on fiber optic installation and repair, and was primarily led by Sumitomo Electric. The training was comprised of lectures and hands-on lessons.

“AWS has a significant presence in Virginia, and this specialized course is a terrific way to give back to our communities, providing critical skills training in rapidly-evolving technologies,” Northam said in a statement. “We are proud that AWS and Sumitomo selected Danville to offer this training event.”