Data centers and new power in Wheatland County, MT

3.2 GW of new power is waiting to connect to the grid in Wheatland County, MT — 8 active requests. Typical wait: 5.3 years. 6 projects are built, 27 withdrawn. Data as of 14 October 2026.

Live here?

Is one near your house?

We have not mapped a large AI data center inside Wheatland 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 Wheatland 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 Wheatland County right now.

3.2 GW
of new power is waiting to connect
8 projects asked. Not yet approved. Roughly what 2.5 million homes use.
159 MW
has actually been built
6 projects switched on so far.
5.3 yrs
typical wait to plug in

Where every request ever filed here ended up

  • Built 13%
  • Still waiting 18%
  • Withdrawn 60%
  • Paused 9%

Most requests in the US are withdrawn — a developer tests a site and moves on.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

What kind of power is asking to connect

  • Wind 95%
  • Solar 5%

By capacity requested. Data as of 14 October 2026.

All the numbers

45 requests ever filed
Pending applications
8
of 45 ever filed
Capacity queued
3.2 GW
requested, not committed
Already built
159 MW
6 projects connected
Built vs decided
18.2%
27 withdrawn
Median wait
5.3 yr
for applications still pending
Connected capacity
165 MW
indicator, see note

Source: interconnection queues published by NWMT, PacifiCorp. 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
Built6159 MW13.3%
Still waiting83.2 GW17.8%
Withdrawn273.1 GW60.0%
Paused4—8.9%

Waiting to connect, by type of power

TypeProjectsCapacity requested
Wind53.0 GW
Solar3150 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
418Wind750 MWactive2022-01NWMT
C012Wind750 MWactive2020-07PacifiCorp
361Wind600 MWactive2019-03NWMT
1115Wind600 MWwithdrawn2019-02PacifiCorp
C006Wind600 MWactive2019-02PacifiCorp
115Wind460 MWwithdrawn2010-03NWMT
408Wind326 MWactive2021-02NWMT
362Wind300 MWsuspended2019-04NWMT
325Wind250 MWwithdrawn2017-07NWMT
G0356Wind200 MWwithdrawn2009-03BPA
G0355Wind200 MWwithdrawn2009-03BPA
G0354Wind200 MWwithdrawn2009-03BPA
G0353Wind200 MWwithdrawn2009-03BPA
111Wind200 MWwithdrawn2009-10NWMT
360Wind200 MWsuspended2019-02NWMT

How Wheatland County compares

#104 in the US · #1 in MT

Wheatland County ranks #104 of 1,607 US counties by power waiting to connect, and #1 of 29 in Montana.

Common questions about power in Wheatland County

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

The median wait for a project still in the interconnection queue in Wheatland County is 5.3 years. Across the US, most large loads are quoted three to seven years depending on the market and whether network upgrades are needed. 6 projects in Wheatland County have reached energization and 27 were withdrawn, so the withdrawal rate here is a better guide to risk than any single quoted timeline.

How much capacity is available in Wheatland County, MT?

3.2 GW is currently requested across 8 active interconnection requests, and 159 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 Wheatland 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 Wheatland County — NWMT, PacifiCorp — parsed and normalised by Watt Street. Every figure carries the date it was true. Data as of 14 October 2026.

Go deeper on Wheatland 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 Wheatland County on the map County reports All of Montana