Our Approach to Responsible Growth

Priorities for Responsible Growth

Responsible data center development requires balancing three interrelated priorities:

Together, these priorities reflect how we approach growth responsibly and build trust with our communities.

Protecting Ratepayers

Policymakers around the world have raised reasonable questions about how data centers are impacting communities, especially on the costs for electricity ratepayers. On Wednesday March 4, the White House issued the Ratepayer Protection Pledge calling on leading U.S. hyperscalers and AI companies “to protect American consumers from price hikes due to data center energy and infrastructure requirements, and lower electricity costs for consumers in the long term.” We thank the administration for its leadership in calling attention to the issue and driving discussions on solutions.

Vantage recognizes that the energy resources needed for the rapidly growing use of AI and cloud computing are unprecedented. Traditionally, the costs associated with the development and use of energy generation and transmission assets were spread across a utility’s territory through base rates approved by state utility commissions. For many years, the pace of innovation offset electricity demand growth, delivering greater efficiency in energy management that helped reliably deliver electrons across the grid and kept aging equipment online past its intended lifespan.

What’s different today is that the pace of innovation alone is no longer sufficient to address the electricity demand growth challenges associated with the aging grid infrastructure. Much of the transmission system that makes up the grid in the U.S. is more than 25 years old, pre-dating the modern Internet. In addition, reliability requires significant capital investment and upgrades to grid infrastructure. Doing so means not only making the necessary improvements to the infrastructure that brings new supply online but modernizing the approach to cost allocation that protects ratepayers.

For these reasons, Vantage Data Centers is committed to ensuring that we pay our fair share to build and use the electricity generation and transmission we need. We are also committed to ensuring that other ratepayers such as homeowners and small businesses are not burdened with additional costs because of our projects and investments.

We are already putting this commitment into practice. As part of the development of our nearly 1GW Lighthouse campus in Port Washington, Wisconsin, Vantage is partnering with the local utility to implement a new rate class to protect ratepayers. If approved by the state’s utility commission, this new rate class would not only fund additional energy generation assets but also build in ratepayer protections in the form of a separate cost allocation for service and early termination penalties.

Strengthening Communities

We know that it is a privilege to operate in the communities where our data centers are located. That responsibility shapes how we approach community engagement, from early planning through long-term operations. We partner with our neighbors and local organizations to ensure our projects deliver tangible, lasting benefits that reflect local priorities and create shared value over time. The following principles shape how we invest and engage locally:

Creating long-term economic opportunity. Vantage’s investments generate significant economic activity and state and local tax revenues that support essential public services such as schools, infrastructure and emergency services. We work closely with local and state leaders to structure thoughtful economic development agreements that align our investments with community priorities and support economic growth in the regions where we operate.

Investing in local jobs and workforce development. We prioritize local hiring and work to expand access to high-quality jobs across construction, operations and engineering roles. Through partnerships with workforce development organizations, educational institutions and labor groups, we seek to build skills pipelines that connect residents to job opportunities and career pathways in the digital infrastructure economy that support economic mobility.

Enhancing local infrastructure and public assets. Our projects include investments beyond our campuses, such as infrastructure upgrades, environmental restoration efforts and other shared community assets. These investments are informed by community input and are intended to deliver benefits that extend beyond the construction phase.

Putting this approach into practice, our Lighthouse campus in Port Washington, Wisconsin, reflects howcommunity focused development can translate into shared value. The project represents a $15 billion investment, is expected to create approximately 4,000 skilled construction jobs and more than 1,000 permanent jobs, and positions Wisconsin as a hub for next-generation AI and digital infrastructure. Alongside this economic impact, we are partnering with organizations such as WRTP | BIG STEP to create pathways into the skilled trades and pledged $3 million to restore the Valley Creek Corridor.

Our approach is grounded in transparency and accountability. Through ongoing engagement with local officials, neighbors and community stakeholders, we share information, listen and adapt as projects move forward. By maintaining open dialogue and long-term partnerships, we work to build trust over time and be responsible stewards in the communities where we operate.

Advancing Sustainability

We approach sustainability holistically, recognizing that affordability, strong communities and environmental performance are deeply interconnected. Building on our existing commitments, Vantage has established a set of sustainability goals with a local focus that set the direction for how we design, develop and operate data centers as we scale. Across our fleet we have a goal to achieve:

• 100% matched zero-carbon electricity by 2030
  • Focused on the addition of affordable, clean sources, including geothermal and nuclear.
• Portfolio-wide annual average operating PUE of 1.25 by 2030
  • By improving efficiency to use energy responsibly and reduce waste.

And all new developments will aim to achieve:

• Water positive outcomes
  • By minimizing water use and restoring more water to local watersheds than we consume.
• Biodiversity net gain
  • By enhancing the local ecosystem onsite or within the community.
• Green building certification
  • By embedding sustainable design into how we design and build our facilities.

Achieving these goals at the scale and pace of our growth is ambitious, and that ambition is intentional. These goals are designed to drive action: bringing new, additional, affordable clean energy capacity to the grid; partnering with customers to use energy responsibly; and being thoughtful stewards of natural resources and local habitats in the communities where we operate. In some markets, meeting these goals while supporting reliability, affordability and local economic growth may require energy bridge solutions, which we pursue thoughtfully and in parallel with concrete actions to expand clean, grid connected energy.

Progress toward these goals will be driven by sustained investment, strong partnerships with energy partners and customers, and continuous improvement over time. Together, they support growth that is more efficient, resilient and aligned with community expectations. We look forward to sharing more detail on these goals in the months ahead.

Looking Ahead

We recognize that still more will have to be done to maximize the benefits and Vantage will not be able to do it all alone. We are committed to work with the Administration, Congress, governors, regulators, local officials and many more community stakeholders on policy reforms and efforts that accelerate the development of digital infrastructure while doing so in a responsible manner.

Today’s rapid growth in digital infrastructure is shaping the next chapter—much like past industrial transformations—supporting innovation, community and economic progress. Vantage is proud to be part of shaping that future and is committed to being a true partner in our communities.

To learn more, please visit www.vantage-dc.com.