The company behind a massive planned power cable to the UK is pivoting to plans for a large data center campus in Devon.

Announced this week, Xlinks has proposed a large AI data and energy storage development at Alverdiscott, Devon.

The campus comprises two separate planning proposals submitted to Torridge District Council: a 1.5GW large-scale AI data center campus known as Valeon, and a 1.8GW on-site battery energy storage facility to support it.

Full details haven’t been shared, but a site render shows five buildings and an on-site substation.

The company said the Devon data campus development would bring “significant economic investment, skilled employment, and clean energy infrastructure” to the region, calling it a “substantial opportunity for growth in the South West.”

Xlinks said the project would total more than £12 billion ($16.4bn) in investment.

Public consultation on both proposals will run from July 14 to August 11.

Founded in 2018, Xlinks was previously spearheading the Morocco–UK Power Project, a 3.6GW high-voltage direct current interconnector to carry solar and wind-generated electricity from Morocco to the United Kingdom. The interconnector cable – set to be the longest in the world – would have landed at Alverdiscott.

Support for the 2,500-mile power cable was withdrawn by the UK government last year. Supported by the previous Conservative government, the new Labour government said the project was “not in the UK national interest” and was more focused on homegrown solutions. Early investors in the project included Abu Dhabi energy firm TAQA, Total Energies, and Octopus Energy.

In the wake of the dropped support for the power cable, Xlinks said it would work to unlock the potential of the project and “maximize its value for all parties in a different way.”

A Change.org petition against the data center proposal has gathered more than 2,250 signatures at the time of writing. A GoFundMe page to fund the opposition campaign has raised £615 ($814.53).

“North Devon is not an empty space waiting to be industrialised. It is a living landscape of farms, villages, wildlife and communities that have existed for generations,” the petition states. “We believe this proposal is entirely inappropriate for this location and should not proceed.”