Why China Cares About Data Centers in Arkansas

By Greg Kiley

Today, China is trying to slow the pace of data center development across the country, including in states across the nation like Georgia, Virginia and Arkansas. This is because the U.S. is locked in an AI arms race with China and the winner of this high-stakes AI competition may well dominate the global economy and enjoy military supremacy.

Raising awareness of this threat to our national security, Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton recently urged the Department of Justice to investigate Beijing’s efforts to block data centers in America by working through U.S. nonprofits.    

With that in mind, it’s important to call attention to two well-known partner organizations in Arkansas, called the Arkansas Advanced Energy Association (AAEA) and the Arkansas Advanced Energy Foundation (AAEF). These self-described “sister organizations” split activities between a trade association that does lobbying (AAEA) and a non-profit “educational” affiliate that conducts research and offers public instruction (AAEF). In reality, the division is just on paper – the organizations share an Executive Director, corporate Board members, and an address. 

These groups are notable given their high-profile work on a variety of energy issues in Arkansas that often conflict with data center construction. Notably, the AAEA helped to lead the opposition against legislation that was essential for the construction of data centers in Arkansas. 

With their vocal opposition to this data center law in mind, I do think it is worth pointing out how AAEF funds its energy policy work in Arkansas. 

Between 2019 and 2024, AAEF received grants of at least $1.3 million from a group called the U.S. Energy Foundation – that’s at least 69% of AAEF’s total grant funding during that period. 

But the origins of this U.S. Energy Foundation are under scrutiny. Prior to 2019, the group was known simply as the Energy Foundation (EF) and EF had a variety of well-documented ties to the Chinese Communist Party. In 2019, EF split into the aforementioned U.S. Energy Foundation and Energy Foundation China (EFC). Also, much like AAEF and AAEA, the Energy Foundation split seems to be performative. According to a report from a reputable conservative think tank, from 2019 through 2022, both entities shared office space in San Francisco. The latest data found that both continued sharing personnel and six EFC employees were being compensated by the U.S. Energy Foundation.

Even more concerning is that EFC’s leadership still has ties to senior Communist Party officials, and it has been criticized for supporting energy policies in the U.S. that benefit China. Transparency groups have raised alarm bells and, last July, the Kansas Attorney General alleged that EFC plays a “central role” in “China’s ongoing asymmetric campaign against the United States…” and called on the U.S. Department of Justice to launch an investigation into EFC. 

Finally, as someone who has closely studied China’s long-term goals to achieve global domination, I cannot stress enough that Beijing’s efforts to influence public policy in the U.S. are a legitimate threat. Therefore, it’s fair to point out China’s investment in AAEF and Arkansans and ask: “is this just a coincidence or does China have an agenda to thwart data center construction that puts our national security at risk?” In fact, residents of all states where China is funding anti-data center propaganda should be asking that same question. 

Gregory Kiley is an Air Force veteran and a former professional staff member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee.

This article was originally published by RealClearEnergy and made available via RealClearWire.