Nscale is developing Monarch Compute Campus north of Point Pleasant, West Virginia, with phase one designed for 1.35 gigawatts of AI computing capacity and delivery targeted by early 2028.[1] Civil construction was underway in September, when the site manager described roughly 900 workers across the site and related pipeline work.[8]
Anthropic has signed agreements for computing services at Monarch, according to Nscale’s September SEC filing.[37] That is a firmer customer commitment than the Microsoft letter of intent announced in March. A proposed second Anthropic facility remained under negotiation in October reporting.[2][39]
Contractors can use this guide to identify the project inquiry route and investigate who buys their scope. Workers can find trade-referral contacts, local training programs and two direct applications for Nscale management roles. The named companies are research leads, not a list of open subcontract packages or craft vacancies.
Monarch phase one at a glance
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Where is the site? | Mason County, north of Point Pleasant. The proposed power facility is at 30 Monarch Way, off Ohio River Road near the former Mason County Airport.[8][35] |
| Who is developing it? | Nscale, which acquired American Intelligence & Power Corporation on March 31, 2026. Monarch Cloud Campus LLC is the environmental permit applicant.[37][35] |
| What is phase one? | Nscale’s current campus page describes 1.35 GW of AI compute, targeted for early 2028. The air application describes three H-shaped data-center buildings.[1][34] |
| Who is the customer? | Anthropic signed four GPU-service agreements on August 25. Payments could total up to about $44.6 billion, subject to delivery and service conditions.[37] |
| What activity is documented? | September 20 reporting described civil work and preparations for vertical construction. That account does not establish today’s building-by-building completion.[8] |
| What does it cost? | Nscale advertises more than $20 billion in planned capital investment. A commissioned EY model uses $69.2 billion in phase-one development spending, including equipment. Neither figure is an open construction budget.[1][36] |
| How can a contractor inquire? | Use the inquiry on Nscale’s Monarch page and ask for the buyer responsible for your scope. No project-specific open bid package was verified in this review.[1] |
| Where can workers start? | Experienced workers can ask the building-trades councils about craft referrals. New entrants can contact apprenticeship programs. Two Nscale management listings provide direct applications.[32][28][29] |
The power-facility address is a regulatory location, not a verified worker entrance or delivery gate. Get reporting instructions from the employer before traveling.
Anthropic, Microsoft and project financing
Nscale’s September 18 registration statement documents four Anthropic agreements signed August 25 for GPU infrastructure at Monarch.[37] The agreements provide for payments up to approximately $44.6 billion, with services deployed in four tranches.[37] A tranche is a separately delivered portion of the computing service. Payments depend on delivery and availability requirements; the headline value is not money already received.[37]
The filing says Nscale had no binding commitments for the financing required to perform those agreements as of the prospectus date.[37] Missed delivery deadlines or sustained service failures can give Anthropic termination rights.[37] Those conditions matter to suppliers assessing the timing and credit exposure of a large equipment or construction order.
Nscale subsequently announced a $3.36 billion company-wide convertible-note financing on September 25.[40] It described an initial $2.36 billion tranche at closing and a further $1 billion NVIDIA commitment expected in mid-November.[40] The announcement does not identify that transaction as completed financing for the Anthropic obligations.[40] The September filing establishes the financing gap at that date, not proof that it remains unchanged today.[37][40]
Microsoft’s March Monarch announcement was a letter of intent.[2] Quartz reported October 20, citing Bloomberg, that Microsoft withdrew from the West Virginia site over the summer, allowing Anthropic to take its place.[38] That reported change concerns Monarch, not every Microsoft contract across Nscale’s business.
Bloomberg’s October 19 report describes talks for a second Monarch facility in a deal that could be worth about $45 billion.[39] Quartz describes the proposed building as another 460 MW and says the terms were not settled.[38] Keep that negotiation separate from the signed August agreements. Adding the headline amounts would imply a second contract that the reviewed sources do not establish.
Contractors: named companies and the buying route
Nscale’s June job-fair announcement names employers working with it, including Ames Construction, Apex, Boyd CAT, ERM, Kiewit, Rettew and Thrasher.[4] It identifies useful organizations to research, but does not assign their construction packages or name a campus-wide general contractor.
| Organization | Documented involvement | Before approaching for work |
|---|---|---|
| Nscale | Developer and intended operator. Its construction leadership role includes selecting and managing construction firms and major subcontractors.[1][29] | Ask which purchasing team controls your scope and phase. |
| Ames Construction, Apex, Boyd CAT, Kiewit, Rettew and Thrasher | Named employers working with Nscale in its June job-fair announcement.[4] | Confirm the firm’s package and whether it buys the service you sell. |
| Environmental Resources Management (ERM) | Named in the job-fair announcement and submitted the reviewed state-waters applications for Monarch Cloud Campus LLC.[4][26][27] | Environmental application work does not establish a broader construction contract. |
| Caterpillar and NVIDIA | Named power and computing collaborators. The air application specifies Caterpillar gas engines.[2][34] | Equipment involvement does not identify the installing contractor or an open local purchase order. |
| WV and Tri-State building-trades councils | Signed a workforce agreement with Nscale covering the data center and power facility.[32] | Ask about the appropriate craft and referral process. |
Start with Nscale’s Monarch project inquiry. Its form accepts company and contact details with a message.[1] Explain your trade, relevant project experience and available workforce. Ask for the buying entity, package owner, qualification requirements and submission method. An actual bid invitation should identify the scope and deadline before you commit estimating time.
Keep the inquiry separate from a job application. Nscale’s June announcement provided an event-information email for a job fair that has already happened; it did not designate that address for supplier onboarding.[4]
Workers: craft referrals, training and applications
Experienced tradespeople
The West Virginia Building & Construction Trades Council and Tri-State council have a documented workforce agreement with Nscale for Monarch.[32] Ask which affiliated local handles your craft and whether an employer has requested workers for this project. Their published contacts are:
- WV Building & Construction Trades Council: 304-346-1367.[41]
- Tri-State Building & Construction Trades Council: 606-324-9880.[42]
The agreement provides a workforce route, not a current dispatch order. Ask about referral eligibility, the employer, worksite, start date and required credentials. Obtain wage, overtime, travel and lodging terms from the employer or hiring hall before accepting an assignment.
Ames Construction’s craft-teams page provides an employer-wide job search.[45] We did not verify a current craft listing that names Monarch in this bounded review. Search by the actual job and location, then confirm the assignment rather than assuming every Point Pleasant posting belongs to this campus.
Apprenticeships for new entrants
Plumbers & Fitters Local 521 lists Mason County among its eligible applicant counties and publishes 304-523-6085 for its training coordinator.[43] Applications open at announced times.[43] The program says its selection list is for future requirements and is not an employment offer.[43]
Iron Workers Local 787 also lists Mason County within its jurisdiction and publishes 304-485-6231 for its apprenticeship coordinator.[44] Confirm current intake and eligibility before visiting. These are local training routes, not verified Monarch placements.
Nscale management positions
Both listings below named Monarch and displayed application sections when checked October 21, 2026.[28][29] They are senior management roles, not craft vacancies.[28][29]
| Listing | Location and advertised requirements |
|---|---|
| Director of Operations & Maintenance, ID 4871255101 | On-site in Mason County; at least 15 years of relevant operations leadership. Advertised base salary: $160,000 to $210,000.[28] |
| Construction, VP, ID 5005104101 | Monarch Project Site; leadership of field execution across power and data-center infrastructure. Advertised base salary: $230,000 to $410,000.[29] |
Nscale’s Monarch page also accepts questions about skilled-trades opportunities.[1] Use that route for a project question; submit an application through the named employer’s listing. Availability can change after the review date.
Phase-one compute and the power plant
Monarch’s capacity figures measure different systems. Nscale’s current campus page describes 1.35 GW of AI computing capacity in phase one.[1] The air application estimates about 1.8 GW of peak total site demand, including computing, buildings and cooling, and proposes 2.16 GW of natural-gas generation using 864 engines across 12 power nodes.[34]
The September SEC filing describes an initial target of 2 GW gross generation and 1.37 GW IT load by the first half of 2028.[37] That filing and the permit design use different capacity figures. Neither turns the proposed plant into operating capacity. The graphic below identifies each figure’s source rather than combining them.
Nscale’s 8 GW-plus figure describes future power expansion potential, not phase-one computing capacity.[1] The owner describes on-site power and closed-loop cooling without municipal drinking water for operations; the air application describes minimal makeup water.[1][34] Those are design statements, not measured results or a claim of zero total water use.
Construction progress, permits and opening dates
MetroNews reported September 20 that site manager Jason Bechtle described continuing civil work and approaching vertical construction.[8] His roughly 900-worker estimate included pipeline and on-site workers during the preceding week.[8] It should not be presented as the number currently working inside the data-center buildings.
WVDEP’s stormwater notice describes failed controls following July 11 rainfall and requires repairs and added erosion protection.[33] The order stopped land-disturbing work in a separate drainage area until controls were installed and the agency verified compliance, rather than describing a campus-wide shutdown.[33] This review did not establish whether that area later received clearance.
The proposed power plant’s air application, R14-0042, remained in public review in the material checked October 21.[35] WVDEP’s notice sets a virtual hearing for October 29 and a written-comment deadline of 5 p.m. on October 30, 2026, before final action.[35] A preliminary finding is not an issued final permit.
State-waters applications SWP-26-0002 and SWP-26-0003 cover data centers No. 2 and No. 3.[26][27] Each describes one building with four power nodes; proposed disturbance limits are about 193 and 166 acres respectively.[26][27] WVDEP lists October 26 as the comment deadline.[24] These application areas do not replace Nscale’s advertised campus footprint of more than 2,250 acres.[1]
When will phase one open?
Use early 2028 as Nscale’s current campus-page delivery target, not a guaranteed opening date.[1] Its September filing targets initial power and IT capacity by the first half of 2028.[37] Earlier milestones remain in other documents: the air notice anticipates facility startup in April 2027, and the operations listing mentions initial operation in early 2027.[35][28]
Those dates may refer to different equipment, buildings or service milestones, but the sources do not reconcile them. Contractors should obtain the schedule for their package. Workers should rely on an employer’s confirmed start instructions, not the campus opening forecast.
Investment and workforce forecasts
Nscale’s planned investment figure exceeds $20 billion.[1] EY’s August report, commissioned by Nscale, models $69.2 billion in phase-one development spending using a 1.35 GW data-center and 2 GW power-plant framework, including equipment assumptions such as GPUs.[1][36] That modeled total is neither a disclosed construction contract nor the value of work available to local firms.
EY projects 4,375 average annual direct construction jobs over roughly two years and 645 on-site operating jobs.[36] Wider economic-impact totals include supplier activity and household spending.[36] EY says Nscale supplied the underlying management data and that EY did not audit it.[36] Forecast jobs, a dated site headcount and current employer vacancies answer different questions.
Questions about Monarch phase one
Where is Monarch Compute Campus?
Monarch is in Mason County, north of Point Pleasant, West Virginia.[8] The proposed power facility is at 30 Monarch Way, off Ohio River Road near the former Mason County Airport. Confirm the actual reporting gate with your employer; this regulatory address is not a verified worker entrance.[8][35]
Is Anthropic or Microsoft the customer at Monarch?
Nscale’s September SEC filing documents four Anthropic agreements signed August 25 for Monarch services, with payments up to about $44.6 billion subject to delivery and availability conditions.[37] Microsoft’s earlier announcement was a letter of intent.[2] Quartz, citing Bloomberg, reported that Microsoft withdrew from the site over the summer.[2][38]
Who is the Monarch general contractor?
The sources reviewed do not identify a campus-wide general contractor. Nscale names Ames Construction, Apex, Boyd CAT, ERM, Kiewit, Rettew and Thrasher among participating employers, but that announcement does not define their construction packages.[4]
How can tradespeople find work at Monarch?
Ask the WV Building & Construction Trades Council or Tri-State council which affiliated local handles your craft and whether a Monarch employer has requested workers.[32][41][42] Use a named employer’s listing for an application. The two Nscale applications in this report are senior management jobs; apprenticeship contacts are training routes, not confirmed campus placements.[28][29][43]
Is phase one an 8 GW data center?
No. Nscale’s current campus page describes 1.35 GW of phase-one AI compute and more than 8 GW of future power potential.[1] The air application separately proposes 2.16 GW of gas generation.[34] Computing demand, plant generation and future expansion are different measures.[34]
Has Monarch received its final air permit?
The notice reviewed October 21 describes a preliminary finding and public comment process for R14-0042, not a final issued air permit. It sets October 30 as the written-comment deadline before final action.[35]
Follow the project and compare other campuses
Use the Echelon project finder to compare documented builders, contractor inquiries and worker routes across the data-center reports. It also provides separate contractor and worker email-update requests. A sent request and confirmation are required to subscribe.
Sources and methodology
Reviewed October 21, 2026. This guide combines company filings, owner announcements, West Virginia permit documents, employer listings, trade-council pages and dated reporting. We distinguish signed agreements from negotiations, financing announcements from committed project funding, and forecasts from measured activity. Application and inquiry routes were inspected without submitting information. The employer review is bounded, not an exhaustive inventory of every contractor’s hiring system.
- Monarch Compute Campus West Virginia | AI Infrastructure Development
- Nscale and Microsoft Announce Collaboration with NVIDIA and Caterpillar to Deliver 1.35GW of NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72 GPUs at Flagship AI Factory Campus in West Virginia | Nscale
- Nscale to Host Monarch Compute Campus Job Fair Connecting Job Seekers with Careers and Training | Nscale
- Monarch Compute Campus to go vertical soon
- Settlements, Orders, or Draft Permits Out to Public Notice
- DRAFT_DEP Cover_Monarch Phase 2 NWP39_20260505.docx
- DRAFT_DEP Cover_MCC DC3_20260506.docx
- Director of Operations & Maintenance
- Construction, VP
- WV Building Trades Sign MOU for Monarch Compute Campus Data Center
- WVDEP Issues Enforcement Order Following Stormwater Violations at Monarch Cloud Campus Construction Site
- Monarch air permit application R14-0042
- WVDEP notice of intent to issue R14-0042
- EY economic and tax contributions of Monarch Compute Campus, August 2026
- S-1
- Nscale in talks with Anthropic for second $45 billion computing deal
- Nscale, Anthropic in Talks for $45 Billion Cloud Computing Deal
- Nscale Raises $3.36 Billion in Pre-IPO Convertible Financing | Nscale
- Contact – WV Building & Construction Trades
- Contact – Tri-State Building & Construction Trades Council
- Plumbers & Fitters 521 : Huntington – WV Building & Construction Trades
- Iron Workers 787 : Parkersburg – WV Building & Construction Trades
- Craft Teams | AmesConstruction.com