Google Data Center Water and Power Use Exposed in Nebraska

The improperly redacted documents also expose the tax refunds Google expects from Nebraska. Agate LLC is anticipating a $55.8 million refund from 2025 taxes. Fireball Group LLC expects $39.1 million, and Westwood Solutions LLC expects $22.5 million — a combined total of over $117 million.

Google's filings note the data centers "utilize or expect to utilize" sales and use tax exemptions under the Nebraska Advantage Act. No rebates have been received yet, and no incentive payments under the ImagiNE Nebraska Act have been paid or are expected, according to the reports.

Google cited Nebraska statutes §§ 81-1527 and 84-712.05, plus NAC Title 115, to justify hiding the data. But the redaction method — a black box placed over text in a digital document — left the underlying characters intact. Copying and pasting into a new document revealed everything.

The Department of Water, Energy, and Environment Data Center Task Force is overseeing the reporting process, mandated by Governor Jim Pillen's July 20 executive order. The order requires data centers to disclose their impact on water, power grids, and local infrastructure. All reports were due by Sept. 30.

For now, this is a Nebraska-specific story, but it raises questions about data center transparency everywhere. If Google can claim trade secret status for water and power use in one state, similar battles could play out elsewhere. Tunisia has no active Google data center, so there's no direct impact here — and no word on whether these facilities or their tax arrangements will be scrutinized in North Africa.

What it does show is that the AI and cloud boom has real resource costs. The 765 million gallons of water used by six Nebraska data centers in a single year is a tangible number. As more countries court Big Tech with tax incentives, the question of who pays — and who gets to know — becomes harder to ignore.