TeraWulf Secures Federal Approval for Morgantown Generating Station Acquisition

TeraWulf, a company specializing in cryptocurrency mining and AI-focused data centers, has secured federal approval for its acquisition of the Morgantown Generating Station in Charles County, Maryland. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ruled on July 29 that the ownership transfer from GenOn affiliate Lanyard Power Holdings to Chesapeake Data LLC, a TeraWulf subsidiary, is 'consistent with the public interest.' However, the decision does not permit data center construction, new or repowered generation, power sales behind the meter, or changes to the plant's interconnection and capacity rights within the PJM electricity market.

The Morgantown Power LLC facility, which has four operating oil-fired generating units with a combined 216-megawatt capacity, was previously operated by GenOn. TeraWulf plans to convert the site into a massive data center campus, initially scaling up to 500 megawatts and eventually reaching 1 gigawatt of load while aiming to remain a 'net-positive energy supplier' to Maryland's grid.

The approval process drew opposition from environmental groups such as Public Citizen and the Sierra Club, which raised concerns about air and water pollution, electricity rates, and the county's ability to absorb the new industrial load. FERC declined to condition its approval on a commitment that Morgantown's existing capacity would not be withdrawn from the regional power market.