Joliet 29

Brownfield

Joliet, Will, Illinois · Midwest Generations EME LLC

Legacy capacity

1,320

Joliet 29 is a natural gas plant in Joliet, Will, Illinois, retired 2023-09-01. Retired generation sites are among the most attractive datacenter redevelopment targets: the existing interconnection was sized for roughly 1,320 MW of generation, so the grid hookup, transmission rights, and often cooling-water access are already in place — collapsing the speed-to-power timeline versus a greenfield build.

Former use & capacity

Former usenatural gas plant

Site typeretired_plant

Existing capacity1,320 MW

Retirement date2023-09-01

EIA plant ID#384

Grid hookup & remediation

Nearest substation0.1 mi

OperatorMidwest Generations EME LLC

Operator address1800 Channahon Rd, Joliet, IL, 60436

Why this site is datacenter-attractive: a natural gas plant of this scale leaves behind a high-capacity grid interconnection that a new load can re-use, frequently shaving years off the interconnection queue. Retired-plant sites also tend to be already zoned for heavy industrial use with established road, rail, and water infrastructure.

Nearby datacenter candidate sites

Scored candidate sites near Joliet 29, ranked by DC Readiness.

Candidate sites near Joliet 29
Site	Type	State	County	Voltage	Capacity	Queue wait	Score
PLANO (765 KV)	Substation-Adjacent	IL	Kendall County	765 kV	1,000 MW	4.6 yrs	78.7
UNKNOWN124436	Substation-Adjacent	IL	Cook County	345 kV	600 MW	2.2 yrs	78.0
UNKNOWN122269	Substation-Adjacent	IL	Cook County	345 kV	600 MW	2.2 yrs	76.8
TAP160103	Substation-Adjacent	IL	Cook County	345 kV	600 MW	2.2 yrs	76.6
PLANO (345 KV)	Substation-Adjacent	IL	DuPage County	345 kV	600 MW	2.2 yrs	76.4
ELECTRIC LIGHT 345 KV	Substation-Adjacent	IL	DuPage County	345 kV	600 MW	2.2 yrs	76.2
UNKNOWN122289	Substation-Adjacent	IL	DuPage County	345 kV	600 MW	2.2 yrs	76.1
UNKNOWN122246	Substation-Adjacent	IL	DuPage County	345 kV	600 MW	2.2 yrs	76.1

Nearby internet exchanges

Equinix CH1/CH2/CH4 - ChicagoChicago, IL · 329 networks
Digital Realty CHI (350 E Cermak)Chicago, IL · 97 networks
CoreSite - Chicago (CH1)Chicago, IL · 71 networks
Equinix CH3 - Elk GroveElk Grove Village, IL · 44 networks

See all datacenter sites in Illinois →

Dataset updated March 2026. Screening estimates derived from public data sources.

Brownfield attributes are derived from EIA retired-generator and EPA public data. Existing capacity reflects the retired plant's historical nameplate, not deliverable interconnection for a new load. Confirm reusable interconnection rights, remediation status, and site availability with the utility, ISO, and current owner.

Go deeper than the public screen

This page shows a public slice of the GridCensus dataset for Joliet 29, Joliet, Will, Illinois. Pro and Enterprise plans unlock the full 164,098-site catalog, raw sub-scores, parcel ownership, interconnection-queue detail, saved searches, and programmatic API access.

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