NorthWestern Energy Group has signed a Letter of Intent to provide power for an undisclosed data center developer in Montana, US.

NorthWestern will provide the data center developer with a minimum of 50MW, with delivery beginning in 2027. The energy supply is expected to increase to 250MW or more by 2027.

1200x627_About_Us
– NorthWestern Energy

“This investment in Montana is a significant milestone for our state’s economic growth and technological advancement, possible because of work done to provide more certainty for data center developers,” said Paul Green, director of the Montana Department of Commerce.

Northwestern’s regulated business will serve the data center. The company has a diversified energy portfolio, including hydroelectric power, wind, coal, gas, and solar. In Montana, 35 percent of its capacity is derived from hydroelectric power.

DCD has contacted NorthWestern for further information on the agreement.

NorthWestern also operates the 175MW Yellowstone County Generating Station and the 1,480MW coal-fired ColStrip Plant, which will increase in capacity in January 2026.

NorthWestern provides energy to Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Yellowstone National Park.

The Montana data center market is one of the smallest in the US. Seven organizations operate nine data centers in the state, including iConnect Montana, which has three facilities. Other operators include Parsec Data Management, Montana Opticom, and Advanced Communications Technology. The state's data centers are located in Billings, Missoula, and Great Falls.

Two of these facilities are carrier-neutral, and two provide individual server hosting. However, none offer rack cabinets.

In a recent report, the Frontier Institute asserted that Montana has real growth potential despite its relatively small data center footprint. Montana has several advantages that make it an attractive destination for data centers, including a cool, dry climate, low risk of natural disasters, location between two major data center regions, and ample affordable land within reasonable fiber and power generation distances.

The state has several cryptomining data center developments. In August 2023, Sentinum broke ground on a 20MW cryptomining facility in Montana.