US Georgia residents sue OpenAI and officials over data center
Three Effingham County residents seek damages, alleging that Project Camellia hurt their property values and that nearby purchase offers fell or were withdrawn after the project was announced.
In this article
Three residents of Effingham County, Georgia, have sued OpenAI, affiliated entities and county officials over the approval of Project Camellia, a planned data center. Michelle Finch-Mincey, Lehman Mincey Jr. and Raymond Carver seek civil damages, alleging that the project harmed their property values and that offers for nearby residential properties fell or were withdrawn after its announcement.
The planned project is expected to cost $20 billion to $30 billion and be built in five phases, with a planned capacity of 3.2 gigawatts, Tom’s Hardware said, citing the Effingham Herald on the lawsuit. The residents’ complaint challenges how the project gained approval; its allegations are not court findings.
What the residents allege
The plaintiffs allege that the defendants used nondisclosure agreements and misleading public statements to conceal the project’s nature, and that confidential negotiations and closed-door decisions advanced its approval. They also allege improper land transactions, zoning violations and civil racketeering.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, was originally conceived to counter organized crime. Georgia’s version is broader than the federal law and has also been used in criminal cases. These residents are bringing a civil claim for damages, not a criminal prosecution.
The suit names all county commissioners: Chairperson Damon Rahn, Forrest Floyd, Roger Burdette, Jamie DeLoach, Elizabeth Helmly and Phil Kieffer. It also names County Manager Tim Callanan, Effingham County Industrial Development Authority CEO Brandt Herndon and the authority itself.
Other defendants include Octans GA LLC, described as the entity operating the data center for OpenAI, and Savannah Industrial Development LLC, which was involved in selling authority property to Octans and OpenAI.
The planned project
OpenAI has promised to pay for all required infrastructure upgrades so community utility costs are not affected. The company has also said a closed-loop water system will keep water use minimal. Those are commitments for the planned project, not operating results.
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