Orange County, North Carolina: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy
Home to Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Hillsborough
Local rules on data centers are on the record in Orange County. Orange County is home to most of Chapel Hill (60,643 of its 63,565 residents), Carrboro, Hillsborough and part of Mebane (4,743 of its 21,952 residents). The Moratorium Tracker holds 1 local measure here (1 in force); the latest is “One-year data center moratorium”. Employers here counted 79,536 jobs in 2025, up 8.4% from 2019. 1 MW has retired here since 2019, including UNC-CH LFG Facility (other technologies, 1 MW, 2020). 5 MW of that came online in 2019 or later, mostly solar.
Cities and towns in Orange County
Orange County is home to most of Chapel Hill (60,643 of its 63,565 residents), Carrboro, Hillsborough and part of Mebane (4,743 of its 21,952 residents).
- Chapel Hill also extends into Durham County.
- Mebane also extends into Alamance County.
- Durham also extends into Durham County.
Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Efland.
Residents are 2025 Census estimates for the part of each city, town or township inside this county. Census publishes no annual estimate for unincorporated communities.
What changed in Orange County
1st = the most. Ranks cover counties with a value on record.
| Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in North Carolina |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (2020 → 2025) | 143,748 | 152,498 | ▲ 6.1% | 21st of 100 by size |
| Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 73,386 | 79,536 | ▲ 8.4% | 29th of 100 by growth |
| Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $59,316 | $80,088 | ▲ 35.0% | — |
| Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 3.6% | 3.5% | ▼ 0.1pts | — |
| Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 5 MW | — | |
| Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 1 MW | — |
Its power plants have 50 MW of capacity, 56% of it coal. Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC is the largest utility serving Orange County, one of 3 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 13.94¢/kWh in 2024, above the 13.11¢ median for North Carolina utilities. 152,498 people live here, up 6.1% since 2020. Unemployment was 3.5% in August 2026, against 3.6% in 2019.
Who powers Orange County
Net change in operating capacity since 2019: +4 MW. Colors follow the fuel legend above.
Utilities with service territory in Orange County
| Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC | Investor Owned | Bundled | 1,919,372 | 13.94¢ | 42% |
| Duke Energy Progress - (NC) | Investor Owned | Bundled | 1,356,079 | 15.54¢ | 36% |
| Piedmont Electric Member Corp | Cooperative | Bundled | 30,334 | 15.60¢ | 14% |
Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers.
Operating power plants 5
| Technology | Capacity | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Coal | 28 MW | 56% |
| Solar | 18 MW | 36% |
| Petroleum | 4 MW | 8% |
| Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Univ of NC Chapel Hill Cogen Facility | University of North Carolina | Petroleum | 32 MW | 1991 |
| Oakwood Solar | SunStrong Management | Solar | 5 MW | 2021 |
| Stout Farm | Strata Manager, LLC | Solar | 5 MW | 2014 |
| White Cross Farm | Strata Manager, LLC | Solar | 5 MW | 2013 |
| Ouchchy PV1 | Strata Manager, LLC | Solar | 3 MW | 2015 |
Retired since 2019
| Plant | Technology | MW | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNC-CH LFG Facility | Other technologies | 1 MW | 2020 |
The Orange County labor market
| Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All industries | 79,536 | $80,088 | 1.00 |
| Power and communication line construction | 16 | $81,038 | 0.12 |
| Data processing and hosting | 295 | $280,568 | 1.19 |
Concentration is the BLS location quotient: 1.0 means the industry holds the same share of local jobs as it does nationally. Industry rows count private employers; cells BLS suppresses are left out.
Data centers and local rules in Orange County
Local measures 1
| Measure | Status | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-year data center moratorium | In force | 2026-04 |
Orange County and its neighbors
Of the 5 counties that border Orange County, Person County carries the most build-out activity: data centers, planned generation and operating plants combined.
| County | Population | Jobs since 2019 | Operating MW | Planned MW | Data centers | Local measures |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orange County | 152,498 | ▲ 8.4% | 50 MW | — | — | 1 |
| Alamance County | 186,177 | ▲ 6.2% | 33 MW | 35 MW | 1 | 1 |
| Caswell County | 22,563 | ▲ 0.2% | 18 MW | — | — | — |
| Chatham County | 85,111 | ▲ 31.9% | 42 MW | — | — | 1 |
| Durham County | 347,240 | ▲ 10.5% | 19 MW | — | 9 | 1 |
| Person County | 40,636 | ▼ 6.8% | 3,344 MW | 80 MW | 1 | — |
More of North Carolina
Orange County, answered from the record
Who provides electricity in Orange County, North Carolina?
3 utilities have service territory in Orange County in the EIA-861 2024 report: Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC, Duke Energy Progress - (NC), Piedmont Electric Member Corp. The largest, Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC, charged residential customers 13.94¢/kWh on average in 2024.
What county is Chapel Hill, NC in?
Most of Chapel Hill is in Orange County: 60,643 of its 63,565 residents, or 95%. The rest of the city lies in Durham County.
What county is Carrboro, NC in?
Carrboro is in Orange County, North Carolina. About 20,962 people live there (2025 Census estimate).
What power plants are in Orange County?
5 operating plants with 50 MW of capacity. The largest is Univ of NC Chapel Hill Cogen Facility (32 MW, petroleum).
Are there data centers in Orange County?
The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Orange County. The nearest activity on record is next door in Durham County.
Is Orange County adding jobs?
Employers counted 79,536 jobs in 2025 against 73,386 in 2019 (+8.4%, BLS QCEW).
Does Orange County have a data center moratorium?
The SAVRN Moratorium Tracker holds 1 local measure for Orange County, 1 in force.