Project Big Pine data center, New Boston, Texas

Project Big Pine is a planned data center campus at the TexAmericas Center industrial park near New Boston in Bowie County, Texas, being marketed by the developer Potentia Development. In August 2026 Potentia, based in The Woodlands, said it was looking for a hyperscale, AI, neocloud or other data center operator to anchor the 450-acre site, and that it would power the campus with its own on-site generation rather than a grid connection.

TexAmericas Center and Potentia first announced the project in April 2026, describing a campus of about 500 acres for data centers, AI and other power-intensive users. They put the investment at an estimated $3.5 billion at full buildout, with about 120 permanent jobs. Potentia says it can energize the site 20 to 30 months after a qualifying operator signs on, and that it has advanced natural gas delivery plans with interstate pipeline operators. A permanent grid connection is being pursued separately with the AEP utility SWEPCO; Potentia says a SWEPCO screening found room on an adjacent 345kV line for 300MW in 2032, 200MW more in 2034 and another 300MW in 2036, subject to Southwest Power Pool studies. TexAmericas Center executive director Scott Norton said at least six companies had shown interest, and that tenants would not draw power from the traditional grid.

The companies also point to tax breaks at the site: Foreign Trade Zone No. 258, an Opportunity Zone designation and the Texas large data center sales and use tax exemption. "The first question serious users and infrastructure investors ask is simple: when can the power turn on?" Potentia CEO Carl Quesinberry said. No end user has been named.

Big Pine arrives as opposition to data centers grows across Bowie County. Residents took their concerns to the Bowie County Commissioners Court in August 2026, and signs against the facilities have gone up around the county. Opponents call the Leary and Red Lick area "ground zero" for several proposed sites, and many say developers bought land under nondisclosure agreements. "This was something that we didn't know about because this was signed under an N.D.A., so we didn't have an opportunity to speak our concerns about this operation, and yes we are all very concerned," said Dr. Jamie Davis, who lives in that area. Nancy White of the Legislative Energy Action Foundation told commissioners that her group helped Van Zandt County adopt a moratorium, and said "We actually had four projects pull out since our moratorium with no legal recourse." On August 28, 2026 the commissioners approved the sale of roughly 582 acres for a proposed AI data center after more than two hours of heated public comment, the Texarkana Gazette reported.

Big Pine itself does not go through the county. TexAmericas Center serves as the single local permitting authority for the project, which officials say shortens approvals. What decides whether it is built is whether Potentia signs an anchor operator, and its long-term grid supply depends on SWEPCO and the Southwest Power Pool's study process. Wider data center rules in the county rest with the Bowie County Commissioners Court, which took no action on the data center debate at its August 10 meeting.