Data Centers
REPORT: North Carolina Top State to Build a Data Center
Electricity Maintained throughout Rutherford County by Duke-Energy
- Electrical substations located throughout the county with excellent power quality and reliability. There are 100 kV, 44kV and 12.5 kV Three Phase Power lines serving sites throughout the county.
- Electric rates 10-30% below the National average over the last 20 years, with typical cost of $0.04-$0.05 per kWh range for high load factor customers such as data centers. Cost includes energy and demand charges.
- Diversified generation portfolio which provides rate stability and Green Energy: 47% nuclear, 53% coal.
- Located in Rutherford and Cleveland Counties, Duke-Energy's new 800 megawatt Cliffside Steam Plant is nearing completion of construction with over 500 megawatts existing.
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Site Selection Magazine Top 10 Utility (Annually in 2000-2011).
Redundant Fiber through Dukenet, AT&T and Pangaea
AT&T and DukeNet can provide OC192 (10 Gig) service to the many areas of Rutherford County . Their nearest POP is in Charlotte (distance of 62 miles). Pangaea has a POP in Rutherfordton and is a non-profit regional fiber network. Dukenet also provides a local Sonnet ring.
Abundant Capacity of Water and Wastewater by Town of Forest City and Broad River Water Authority
With the exodus of the textile companies that were located all around Rutherford County, there are many water lines and wastewater systems in place, with excess capacity, which will allow for robust cooling to meet data center requirements.
Climatology / Low Risk Hazards
Rutherford County is located within the Isothermal Belt with moderating temperatures and a very low risk of natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes, tornados, hail, ice or snow storms, making it a highly secure and efficient place to have a data facility.
Low Tax Rates
As Western North Carolina continues to recruit large data centers such as Facebook, Google and Apple, state and local officials have shown an ability to create business friendly legislation in order to recruit this growing market segment. Some examples include:
- NC General Statue 105-130.4 - Capital intensive companies are allowed an apportionment of their corporate income tax if they invest a minimum of $1 billion dollars in private funds within a nine year period.
- NC General Statue 105-164.13(55) - Sales of electricity and eligible business property to an internet service provider or web search portal business that invests at least $250 million in private funds are exempt from sales and use tax.
- NC General Statue 105-164.3(5c) - A data center is eligible for a certain tax exemptions if it is a facility that provides infrastructure for hosting or data processing services. The facility must also meet certain power and cooling system requirements to be eligible, as defined in this statue.
- NC General Statue 105-187.51C - Sales of machinery and equipment to be located and used in a major data center are exempt from sales and use tax but are subject to an excise tax at a rate of one percent with a max of $80 per article. Minimum capital investment of $150 million within five years.
- NC General Statue 105-164.13(43a) - Sales and use tax exemption for sales of custom computer software delivered electronically or delivered by load and leave.
Rutherford County's incentive classification by the State allows for companies to take the greatest advantage of tax credits, sales and use tax discounts, exemptions and refunds, discretionary programs, and other cost-saving programs. For additional incentives that are available, click here.
North Carolina has no property tax. The Rutherford County property tax rate is $0.607/$100 which is among the lower twenty percent of all counties in North Carolina. 
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