Terra Energy Matsu Valley Data Center
TIMELINE
About
The proposed Terra Energy Center is a large-scale coal and carbon capture and storage (CCS) project planned for Alaska’s Susitna River Valley that is being marketed to power large energy consumers such as mines, data centers, and manufacturing throughout the West Susitna and Port Mackenzie . While presented as a modern energy solution, the project and path for development in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, it raises significant questions about its cost, assumptions, environmental impact, and reliance on public funding.
Mat-Su Assembly approved to help Terra Energy find investors and developers to build a large data center on borough-owned land. TECC holds a land use permit in the Port District for feasibility testing, aimed at developing an Advanced Manufacturing and Computing Campus for large-scale power consumers. There are 5 proposed locations for this hyperscale data center totaling 10,928 acres.
The five designated areas include: Fish Creek Parcels (approximately 3,435 acres), Ayrshire North (approximately 2,560 acres), Goose Creek (approximately 2,645 acres), Hollywood Road (approximately 1,230 acres) and Lake Lorraine (1,058 acres). The purpose of the permit is to allow TECC the ability to conduct due diligence, marketing, and testing to confirm the feasibility of developing an Advanced Manufacturing and Computing Campus, accommodating large power consuming industries.
The proposed Terra Energy Center raises significant concerns about the use of public funds to support private industrial interests. According to the EERC analysis, approximately 200 MW of the project’s 400 MW capacity (with an additional 100 MW dedicated to carbon capture operations) could be supplied to the proposed Donlin Mine project, effectively tying the power plant to large-scale industrial development.
At the same time, companies with direct financial interests in the project are actively supporting related infrastructure. Nova Minerals, a major investor in Flatlands Energy (owned by Alaska Asia Clean Energy Corporation), is also a strong proponent of the proposed West Susitna Industrial Access Road, a critical piece of infrastructure needed to construct and operate the project. Without a guaranteed market for its coal, the value of Flatlands’ lease depends heavily on these kinds of publicly supported developments.
Terra Energy initiated one such conversation with MEA’s Board of Directors in February 2025, sharing early concepts for their proposed project. At this stage, the Terra Energy Center project remains in an early, conceptual phase. MEA has not entered into a power purchase agreement or made any commitment to procure energy from the project. MEA did provide letters of support during early feasibility discussions to allow further study and evaluation.