# Northampton County, Virginia: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy

Home to Exmore and Cape Charles

No data center or power plant project is on record in Northampton County, but the national build-out still reaches it through its utility bill, its labor market and the projects next door. Construction employs 174, up 54.0% since 2019. Northampton County is home to Exmore, Cape Charles and Nassawadox. Unemployment was 4.0% in August 2026, against 4.7% in 2019. Its power plants have 32 MW of capacity, 62% of it solar. Employers here counted 4,492 jobs in 2025, up 3.1% from 2019.

32 MW
of operating power plants, mostly solar

+3.1%
total jobs since 2019, now 4,492

13.02¢
per kWh for A & N Electric Coop residential customers, 2024

## Cities and towns in Northampton County

Northampton County is home to Exmore, Cape Charles and Nassawadox.

Exmore1,396 residents
Cape Charles1,314 residents
Nassawadox512 residents
Cheriton446 residents
Eastville286 residents
Belle Haven72 residents · 13% of the city
- Belle Haven also extends into [Accomack County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/virginia/accomack-county).

Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Franktown, Willis Wharf.

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 Northampton County

| Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Virginia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (2020 → 2025) | 12,217 | 11,879 | ▼ 2.8% | 109th of 133 by size |
| Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 4,359 | 4,492 | ▲ 3.1% | 56th of 133 by growth |
| Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $32,402 | $45,232 | ▲ 39.6% | — |
| Construction jobs (2019 → 2025) | 113 | 174 | ▲ 54.0% | 8th of 83 by growth |
| Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 4.7% | 4.0% | ▼ 0.7pts | — |
| Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 0 MW |  | — |
| Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 0 MW |  | — |

A & N Electric Coop is the largest utility serving Northampton County. Its residential customers paid an average 13.02¢/kWh in 2024, below the 14.39¢ median for Virginia utilities. 11,879 people live here, down 2.8% since 2020.

## Who powers Northampton County

### Utilities with service territory in Northampton County

| Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A & N Electric Coop | Cooperative | Bundled | 33,096 | 13.02¢ | 24% |

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 

| Technology | Capacity | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Solar | 20 MW | 62% |
| Petroleum | 12 MW | 38% |

| Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hecate Energy Cherrydale LLC | Dominion Renewable Energy | Solar | 20 MW | 2017 |
| Bayview | Calpine Mid-Atlantic Generation LLC | Petroleum | 12 MW | 1963 |

## The Northampton County labor market

| Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All industries | 4,492 | $45,232 | 1.00 |
| Construction | 174 | $54,133 | 0.73 |

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 Northampton County

No data center, local measure or delayed project is on record in Northampton County. Virginia has 13 local measures on record statewide.

## Northampton County and its neighbors

Of the 1 counties that border Northampton County, Accomack 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northampton County | 11,879 | ▲ 3.1% | 32 MW | — | — | — |
| Accomack County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/virginia/accomack-county) | 33,859 | ▼ 2.1% | 540 MW | — | — | — |

## More of Virginia

[All Virginia countiesThe state power page and county mapOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/virginia)[Accomack County33,859 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/virginia/accomack-county)

## Northampton County, answered from the record

### Who provides electricity in Northampton County, Virginia?

1 utility has service territory in Northampton County in the EIA-861 2024 report: A & N Electric Coop. The largest, A & N Electric Coop, charged residential customers 13.02¢/kWh on average in 2024.

### What power plants are in Northampton County?

2 operating plants with 32 MW of capacity. The largest is Hecate Energy Cherrydale LLC (20 MW, solar).

### Are there data centers in Northampton County?

The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Northampton County.

### Is Northampton County adding jobs?

Employers counted 4,492 jobs in 2025 against 4,359 in 2019 (+3.1%, BLS QCEW). Construction went from 113 to 174.

### Does Northampton County have a data center moratorium?

No county-level measure is on record for Northampton County. Virginia has 13 local measures statewide, listed on the state page.

---
Canonical: https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/virginia/northampton-county
Updated: 2026-10-08. Refreshed weekly by SAVRN from EIA, BLS, BEA, Census and the SAVRN trackers. License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).