The Secrets Out: Montana Data Centers Could Need All Our Power

Montana Data Centers Could Bring Massive Energy Demands

We've been hearing a lot lately about massive data centers potentially coming to Montana.

We've heard about the jobs, the billions of dollars, and the impact on the economy these projects could bring. But there's another number that's seems to get lost in the message: how much electricity these things could potentially use.

New Documents Reveal Power Needs for Proposed Montana Data Centers

Newly released documents from the Montana Public Service Commission are giving us a better idea of just how big some of these proposed projects could be.

According to the Livingston Enterprise, NorthWestern Energy previously had letters of intent with three data center developers: Quantica, Sabey, and Atlas.

And the potential energy numbers are pretty wild.

Quantica's original agreement called for up to 1,000 megawatts of power, although the company is now considering a facility that could use as much as 1,100 megawatts.

Sabey was looking at two locations that could each receive up to 250 megawatts, putting the total at 500 megawatts.

Atlas was looking at up to 150 megawatts.

Photo by Geoffrey Moffett on Unsplash

Comparing Data Center Power Needs To Montana's Energy Capacity

Put all three proposals together and you're talking about roughly 1,650 megawatts of potential electricity demand.

For some perspective, NorthWestern currently has around 1,600 megawatts of maximum energy capacity in Montana.

Now, before anyone starts panicking about the lights going out, none of these agreements are currently active. NorthWestern is still studying how these projects could be served and what kind of infrastructure would be needed.

Montana's Data Center Growth Is Raising Energy Questions

And apparently, there could be even more projects waiting in the wings. NorthWestern's CEO recently said the utility is currently assessing eight different data centers.

We knew Montana's data center plans were big, but we had no idea they were this big.