at a July 6th Belmont, N.C. City Council meeting about the company’s Tucker County proposed Ridgeline project
and allegations that the company was instrumental in the drafting of House Bill 2014.
By: Lydia Crawley
The Parsons Advocate
Tucker County was once again at the forefront of social media, as a clip of a July 6th Belmont, N.C. City Council meeting went viral after comments by Ted McGavran, an engineer for Fundamental Data, the company behind the controversial proposed Ridegline power plant projects alleged the company was at the forefront of the drafting of House Bill 2014.
“When we were up in West Virginia, we were the guys who basically wrote the bill and got it through the legislature in 2024 and 2025 and that gave us the opportunity to generate and set out the rules for what is called a mictogrid,” McGavran said.
McGavran said that besides “creating the bill” (HB 2014) the company had free reign over Tucker County, as well as control over the Utilities Commission rates. However, he did say, the only stipulation was that they could only sell 10% of the power they would generate.
“We can pretty much do whatever we want to do up there,” McGavran said. “We set our own rates under the Utilities Commission,” McGavran said.
As for the location, McGavran said the plant would be located on abandoned mining land. He described the area as “the middle of nowhere.” However, it wasn’t just the mining land that he was referencing. He went on to describe how Tucker and Grant Counties combined had a population of 12,000.
“Tucker, Grant County. West Virginia. The combined population of those counties is not 12,000. Abandoned mining land. Its in the middle of nowhere,” McGavran said.
McGavran’s comments at the Council Meeting have been cut, edited and shared by various social media outlets and influencers, giving the issue a global audience.
Governor Morrisey’s Office issued a statement on Tuesday, July 21st denouncing the statements. The Governor’s Office denied that Fundamental Data had any part in drafting the bill and that it was drafted solely and deliberately by the Governor’s Office.
“HB 2014 was the Governor’s bill, and its drafting was deliberately limited to the Governor’s office to ensure the legislation reflected Governor Morrisey’s vision and priorities. While we can’t speak to Fundamental’s interactions with legislators once the bill was introduced, HB 2014 was shepherded through the legislative process by the Governor and his staff,” the statement read.
This statement was followed up by a post on X, formerly Twitter, by Governor Morrisey, which is since been deleted. In the comment, while neither McGavran, nor Fundamental Data are named explicitly, the implications have been drawn by several news outlets. The posting in its entirety has been preserved by such media outlets as West Virginia Watch and others.
“He should be ashamed of himself. No respectable company would allow someone who represents them to mislead the media and public like this. I’ve been worried about how this company has handled itself from the beginning. They need to do much better. Shame on them.” – Governor Patrick Morrisey, on X Thursday morning July 23rd
While a spokesperson for Fundamental Data was contacted for comment on both McGavran and the Governor’s comments, an official response was promised, but had not arrived by press time. A statement had been supplied to Country Roads News on Thursday, July 23rd that denied McGavran’s claims, especially regarding House Bill 2014.
“Fundamental Data did not draft, write, or play any role in drafting HB 2014. Mr. McGavran is not authorized to speak on behalf of the company. Any comments he may have made or may make are solely in his personal capacity and should not be attributed to Fundamental Data. Accordingly, we are not in a position to comment on or characterize Mr. McGavran’s personal statements. Our position is limited to the company’s own involvement, which is straightforward: Fundamental Data played no role in drafting the legislation.” – Fundamental Data to Country Roads News, July 23rd
The July 6th video of McGavran was of a city council meeting in his own town of Belmont, North Carolina. In the video, McGavran identified himself as an engineer for Fundamental Data, names the Tucker County project in detail and urges his own Town Council to implement measures aimed at any potential future data center projects, specifically noise ordinances based on diesel generators such as those the Ridgeline project plan for backup power in Tucker County.
The original Belmont City Council meeting can be found on YouTube on the Belmont NC YouTube page at the following: https://www.youtube.com/live/mI_7CskHTZc?si=ouhF3uWGhjpBAnvA. McGavran is the first presenter.
