Data centers and new power in Stillwater County, MT

595 MW of new power is waiting to connect to the grid in Stillwater County, MT — 4 active requests. Typical wait: 4.1 years. 2 projects are built, 12 withdrawn. Data as of 14 October 2026.

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Is one near your house?

We have not mapped a large AI data center inside Stillwater County itself — but we track the biggest ones nationally, and requests to connect new power here are on the public record.

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The power picture

What is happening with electricity in Stillwater County

Every new power plant, battery or big customer has to join a waiting list before it can plug into the grid. This is what that list looks like in Stillwater County right now.

595 MW
of new power is waiting to connect
4 projects asked. Not yet approved. Roughly what 476,000 homes use.
82 MW
has actually been built
2 projects switched on so far.
4.1 yrs
typical wait to plug in

Where every request ever filed here ended up

  • Built 10%
  • Still waiting 20%
  • Withdrawn 60%
  • Paused 10%

Most requests in the US are withdrawn — a developer tests a site and moves on. That is normal, not a warning sign for Stillwater County.

What kind of power is asking to connect

  • Wind 53%
  • Natural gas 25%
  • Solar 22%

By capacity requested. Data as of 14 October 2026.

All the numbers

20 requests ever filed
Pending applications
4
of 20 ever filed
Capacity queued
595 MW
requested, not committed
Already built
82 MW
2 projects connected
Built vs decided
14.3%
12 withdrawn
Median wait
4.1 yr
for applications still pending
Connected capacity
342 MW
indicator, see note

Source: interconnection queues published by NWMT. Parsed and normalised by Watt Street. Data as of 14 October 2026. A queued project is a request, not a commitment.

Outcome of every request filed here

OutcomeProjectsCapacityShare
Built282 MW10.0%
Still waiting4595 MW20.0%
Withdrawn121.7 GW60.0%
Paused2—10.0%

Waiting to connect, by type of power

TypeProjectsCapacity requested
Wind1315 MW
Natural gas1150 MW
Solar2130 MW

Key dates for projects here

no dated windows published
QueueWhat closesClosesStanding
FERCFERC large-load show cause — stakeholder comments on RTO responses
Comments on the six RTO/ISO responses to the FPA section 206 show-cause orders of 18 June 2026 (PJM EL26-67, SPP EL26-68, NYISO EL26-69, MISO EL26-70…
No date published yetunconfirmed source
FERCFERC RM26-4 — generic large-load rulemaking
Still at ANOPR stage.
No date published yetconfirmed source
FERCGeorgia PSC - Georgia Power must file large-load contracts 30 days before execution
A standing obligation rather than a dated one: large-load contracts must be filed with the commission at least 30 days before they are executed.
No date published yetconfirmed source

A date marked confirmed was checked by a person against the authority's own tariff, order or form page. Anything else is listed so you know it exists, with a link so you can check it yourself. Full calendar.

The biggest projects on file

top 15 by size
ProjectTypeCapacityStatusFiledQueue
31Wind396 MWwithdrawn2004-05NWMT
300Wind315 MWactive2016-07NWMT
302Wind302 MWwithdrawn2016-09NWMT
438Wind250 MWsuspended2023-01NWMT
145Wind200 MWwithdrawn2011-07NWMT
147Wind200 MWwithdrawn2011-08NWMT
421Solar200 MWsuspended2022-02NWMT
465Natural gas150 MWactive2024-06NWMT
449Wind100 MWwithdrawn2023-10NWMT
451Wind100 MWwithdrawn2023-10NWMT
148Wind80 MWwithdrawn2012-01NWMT
244Wind80 MWcompleted2016-02NWMT
327Wind80 MWwithdrawn2017-07NWMT
328Wind80 MWwithdrawn2017-07NWMT
409Wind80 MWwithdrawn2021-02NWMT

How Stillwater County compares

#563 in the US · #6 in MT

Stillwater County ranks #563 of 1,607 US counties by power waiting to connect, and #6 of 29 in Montana.

Common questions about power in Stillwater County

How long does it take to get power for a data center in Stillwater County, MT?

The median wait for a project still in the interconnection queue in Stillwater County is 4.1 years. Across the US, most large loads are quoted three to seven years depending on the market and whether network upgrades are needed. 2 projects in Stillwater County have reached energization and 12 were withdrawn, so the withdrawal rate here is a better guide to risk than any single quoted timeline.

How much capacity is available in Stillwater County, MT?

595 MW is currently requested across 4 active interconnection requests, and 82 MW has actually been built. A queued megawatt is a request, not deliverable capacity — most queued projects are never built. For deliverable offtake capacity at a specific substation you need a utility study, not a queue.

Is Stillwater County, MT a good site for a data center?

This page gives you the power half of that answer: what is queued, what has been energized, how long the wait runs, and which large load interconnection requests are already recorded nearby. The other half — the state policy position, moratoriums and large load tariffs — is on our Montana policy page.

Where does the data on this page come from?

The interconnection queue published by the transmission providers serving Stillwater County — NWMT — parsed and normalised by Watt Street. Every figure carries the date it was true. Data as of 14 October 2026.

Go deeper on Stillwater County

The interactive map plots every one of these applications, and a generated county report puts them in a sourced PDF with the date each figure was true on every page.

Open Stillwater County on the map County reports All of Montana