Næxon

09/20/2026

A massive new data center development has entered construction in western Pennsylvania while refinery turnarounds, LNG maintenance and other industrial shutdown activity are developing across several regions of the United States.

Aligned Data Centers has broken ground on Project Phoenix, a planned 2-gigawatt data center campus in Shippingport, Beaver County, Pennsylvania. The development is planned for the Shippingport Industrial Park and is expected to consist of three major data center facilities.

Industrial Site Gets a New Life

Project Phoenix is particularly notable because of where it is being built. The campus is adjacent to the former Shippingport Power Station, placing a new generation of digital infrastructure within an area with a long industrial and energy history.

The project is planned around dedicated power infrastructure rather than simply depending on conventional local grid capacity. This reflects a broader shift across the data center industry as power generation, transmission, substations and data center construction increasingly become part of the same infrastructure development strategy.

For industrial construction workers, projects of this scale extend far beyond the data halls themselves. Gigawatt-scale campuses can require extensive electrical distribution, substations, backup generation, cooling systems, mechanical piping, structural steel, equipment installation, controls and commissioning infrastructure.

U.S. Fall Turnaround Season Is Underway

Refinery maintenance activity is becoming another important part of the industrial picture as facilities move through the fall 2026 turnaround season.

The Cenovus Lima Refinery in Lima, Ohio, has entered a planned maintenance period expected to continue into approximately mid-October. Large refinery turnarounds can bring significant contractor activity as units are taken offline for inspection, repair, replacement and maintenance.

The Midwest and Great Lakes region deserves particular attention. Current industry reporting indicates that PADD 2 could experience substantial seasonal refinery maintenance activity during the fall.

At the same time, some refiners have shifted planned maintenance from 2026 into 2027. Approximately 144,000 barrels per day of previously expected fall 2026 crude-unit outage capacity has reportedly moved into next year’s maintenance schedule, involving multiple crude units across several refineries.

That makes the individual facility schedule increasingly important for workers trying to determine where the next large mobilization may occur.

Joliet Refinery Experiences Unplanned Shutdown

The ExxonMobil Joliet Refinery in Illinois experienced an unplanned shutdown following a power outage beginning September 13.

The event was different from a scheduled turnaround because the refinery was unexpectedly taken offline. Subsequent operational complications affected the facility as personnel worked toward recovery.

Unplanned outages can generate different labor requirements than scheduled turnarounds because inspection, troubleshooting and repair scopes may develop after equipment has already been shut down.

The restart and maintenance status of the Joliet facility remains an important Midwest industrial signal.

Cove Point LNG Begins Annual Maintenance

The Cove Point LNG export facility in Maryland was scheduled to begin its annual planned maintenance outage around September 19.

The maintenance period is expected to last approximately two weeks.

LNG maintenance outages can involve mechanical, piping, electrical, instrumentation and rotating-equipment work across liquefaction, compression and supporting utility systems.

With U.S. LNG infrastructure continuing to expand, recurring maintenance at existing terminals is becoming another source of industrial outage work alongside traditional refinery and petrochemical turnarounds.

Port Arthur Facilities Recover From Weather-Related Shutdowns

Texas experienced additional refinery disruptions earlier in September following severe weather.

At the Valero Port Arthur Refinery, a power disruption affected operations and resulted in shutdown activity involving refinery equipment, including crude-processing capacity.

The Motiva Port Arthur Refinery also experienced unit shutdowns involving major processing equipment, including FCC, coker, alkylation and reforming operations. Units were subsequently reported returning to operation.

These events were weather-related disruptions rather than conventional planned turnarounds, but they demonstrate how quickly additional inspection, maintenance and repair requirements can emerge across Gulf Coast facilities.

More Refinery Turnarounds Are Approaching

Additional refinery maintenance is expected as the industry moves into the fourth quarter of 2026.

PBF Energy has identified planned turnaround activity involving crude and coker operations at a Gulf Coast refinery, while the company’s Paulsboro Refinery in New Jersey is expected to undergo crude-unit turnaround work.

PBF has also indicated FCC turnaround activity in its Mid-Continent operations during the fourth quarter.

These projects add another layer of refinery maintenance activity heading toward the end of the year.

LNG and Pipeline Construction Continues Along the Gulf Coast

Louisiana continues to generate significant industrial activity beyond scheduled outages.

New equipment orders and infrastructure development associated with LNG facilities and natural-gas pipelines demonstrate continued investment along the Gulf Coast. Projects include compression equipment, liquefaction infrastructure, pipeline systems and supporting utility construction.

Commonwealth LNG in Cameron Parish is also pursuing a major expansion that could substantially increase the planned liquefaction capacity of the facility.

As these developments move from engineering and procurement toward field construction, they can create opportunities for pipefitters, welders, boilermakers, millwrights, electricians, instrumentation technicians, ironworkers, scaffold builders, riggers, crane operators and supervisors.

Data Center Construction Continues to Expand Nationwide

The Pennsylvania groundbreaking comes during an extraordinary period of U.S. data center development. Hundreds of additional facilities are being proposed or developed as companies attempt to secure computing capacity for artificial intelligence, cloud services and other high-density applications.

Not every announced project will ultimately reach construction. Power availability, transmission capacity, permitting, financing, water requirements and community approval can significantly affect schedules.

However, activity continues to spread beyond established data center markets. Major campuses are being planned or developed across Pennsylvania, Texas, Georgia, Ohio, Iowa, Arizona and other states.

For skilled tradespeople, these campuses increasingly resemble industrial construction projects because of the enormous mechanical, electrical, cooling and power-generation infrastructure required.

Multiple Industrial Sectors Are Competing for Skilled Labor

The significance of the current construction cycle is not limited to one industry.

Data centers require enormous electrical and mechanical systems. LNG facilities require process piping, structural steel and rotating equipment. Pipeline projects require welding, fitting and heavy equipment. Refineries continue to require thousands of craft workers during major maintenance periods.

For workers following upcoming opportunities, some of the strongest signals are EPC awards, turnaround contractor selections, subcontract awards, site mobilizations, unit shutdown dates and verified craft hiring.

With fall refinery maintenance underway, fourth-quarter turnarounds approaching, LNG investment continuing along the Gulf Coast and enormous data center projects moving into construction, the U.S. industrial project pipeline remains active heading toward the final months of 2026.