Data centers and new power in Craighead County, AR
950 MW of new power is waiting to connect to the grid in Craighead County, AR — 4 active requests. Typical wait: 3.5 years. 0 projects are built, 14 withdrawn. Data as of 14 October 2026.
Is one near your house?
We have not mapped a large AI data center inside Craighead County itself — but we track the biggest ones nationally, and requests to connect new power here are on the public record.
What is happening with electricity in Craighead County
Every new power plant, battery or big customer has to join a waiting list before it can plug into the grid. This is what that list looks like in Craighead County right now.
Where every request ever filed here ended up
Most requests in the US are withdrawn — a developer tests a site and moves on. That is normal, not a warning sign for Craighead County.
What kind of power is asking to connect
By capacity requested. Data as of 14 October 2026.
All the numbers
18 requests ever filed
Source: interconnection queues published by MISO, SPP. Parsed and normalised by Watt Street. Data as of 14 October 2026. A queued project is a request, not a commitment.
Outcome of every request filed here
| Outcome | Projects | Capacity | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Built | 0 | 0 MW | 0.0% |
| Still waiting | 4 | 950 MW | 22.2% |
| Withdrawn | 14 | 3.2 GW | 77.8% |
| Paused | 0 | — | 0.0% |
Waiting to connect, by type of power
| Type | Projects | Capacity requested |
|---|---|---|
| Solar | 2 | 700 MW |
| Solar + battery | 2 | 250 MW |
Key dates for projects here
1 dated · next closes 2027-09-10 (MISO)
| Queue | What closes | Closes | Standing |
|---|---|---|---|
| MISO | MISO DPP-2026 Definitive Planning Phase application deadline Attachment X of the tariff and BPM-015. | 2027-09-10 | confirmed source |
| FERC | FERC large-load show cause — stakeholder comments on RTO responses Comments on the six RTO/ISO responses to the FPA section 206 show-cause orders of 18 June 2026 (PJM EL26-67, SPP EL26-68, NYISO EL26-69, MISO EL26-70… | No date published yet | unconfirmed source |
| FERC | FERC RM26-4 — generic large-load rulemaking Still at ANOPR stage. | No date published yet | confirmed source |
| FERC | Georgia PSC - Georgia Power must file large-load contracts 30 days before execution A standing obligation rather than a dated one: large-load contracts must be filed with the commission at least 30 days before they are executed. | No date published yet | confirmed source |
| SPP | SPP 2028 CPP Interconnection Cluster Study (ICS) application window Definitive Interconnection System Impact Study cluster, post Order 2023 compliance. | No date published yet | confirmed source |
A date marked confirmed was checked by a person against the authority's own tariff, order or form page. Anything else is listed so you know it exists, with a link so you can check it yourself. Full calendar.
The biggest projects on file
top 15 by size
| Project | Type | Capacity | Status | Filed | Queue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| INDEPENDENCE-ISES - POWERLINE ROAD 500.0kV | Solar | 550 MW | active | 2022-09 | MISO |
| INDEPENDENCE-ISES - POWERLINE ROAD 500.0kV | Solar | 500 MW | withdrawn | 2024-04 | MISO |
| Independence ISES - Powerline Road 500 kV | Solar | 500 MW | withdrawn | 2022-09 | MISO |
| Powerline Road / 8POWERLN_RD% (338156) 500kV Substation | Solar + battery | 400 MW | withdrawn | 2022-09 | MISO |
| Cash-Newport AB 161 kV line | Solar + battery | 200 MW | withdrawn | 2022-09 | MISO |
| CASH - NEWPORT AB 161.0kV | Solar | 200 MW | withdrawn | 2024-04 | MISO |
| JONESBORO (APL) - CASH 161.0kV | Solar | 200 MW | withdrawn | 2024-04 | MISO |
| Independence ISES - Powerline Road 500 kV | Solar + battery | 200 MW | withdrawn | 2022-09 | MISO |
| CASH - NEWPORT AB 161.0kV | Solar | 200 MW | withdrawn | 2024-04 | MISO |
| Independence ISES - Powerline Road 500 kV | Solar + battery | 160 MW | withdrawn | 2022-09 | MISO |
| GEN-2023-132 | Solar | 150 MW | active | 2023-10 | SPP |
| Power Line Road 161 kV Substation | Solar | 150 MW | withdrawn | 2018-03 | MISO |
| HERGETT - POWERLINE ROAD 161.0kV | Solar | 150 MW | withdrawn | 2024-04 | MISO |
| HERGETT - POWERLINE ROAD 161.0kV | Solar | 150 MW | withdrawn | 2024-04 | MISO |
| JONESBORO (APL) - CASH 161.0kV | Solar + battery | 150 MW | active | 2025-07 | MISO |
How Craighead County compares
#391 in the US · #6 in AR
Craighead County ranks #391 of 1,607 US counties by power waiting to connect, and #6 of 34 in Arkansas.
| County | Waiting | Capacity queued |
|---|---|---|
| Crittenden County | 7 | 1.8 GW |
| Mississippi County | 7 | 1.7 GW |
| Jefferson County | 4 | 1.2 GW |
| Jackson County | 4 | 1.2 GW |
| Calhoun County | 3 | 1.1 GW |
| Ouachita County | 4 | 901 MW |
| Phillips County | 6 | 890 MW |
| Hot Spring County | 2 | 875 MW |
Common questions about power in Craighead County
How long does it take to get power for a data center in Craighead County, AR?
The median wait for a project still in the interconnection queue in Craighead County is 3.5 years. Across the US, most large loads are quoted three to seven years depending on the market and whether network upgrades are needed. 0 projects in Craighead County have reached energization and 14 were withdrawn, so the withdrawal rate here is a better guide to risk than any single quoted timeline.
How much capacity is available in Craighead County, AR?
950 MW is currently requested across 4 active interconnection requests, and 0 MW has actually been built. A queued megawatt is a request, not deliverable capacity — most queued projects are never built. For deliverable offtake capacity at a specific substation you need a utility study, not a queue.
Is Craighead County, AR a good site for a data center?
This page gives you the power half of that answer: what is queued, what has been energized, how long the wait runs, and which large load interconnection requests are already recorded nearby. The other half — the state policy position, moratoriums and large load tariffs — is on our Arkansas policy page.
Where does the data on this page come from?
The interconnection queue published by the transmission providers serving Craighead County — MISO, SPP — parsed and normalised by Watt Street. Every figure carries the date it was true. Data as of 14 October 2026.
Go deeper on Craighead County
The interactive map plots every one of these applications, and a generated county report puts them in a sourced PDF with the date each figure was true on every page.
Open Craighead County on the map County reports All of Arkansas