Data centers and new power in Williams County, ND

2.2 GW of new power is waiting to connect to the grid in Williams County, ND — 5 active requests. Typical wait: 1.9 years. 10 projects are built, 9 withdrawn.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 Williams 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 Williams 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 Williams County right now.

2.2 GW
of new power is waiting to connect
5 projects asked. Not yet approved. Roughly what 1.8 million homes use.
1.4 GW
has actually been built
10 projects switched on so far.
1.9 yrs
typical wait to plug in

Where every request ever filed here ended up

  • Built 42%
  • Still waiting 21%
  • Withdrawn 38%

Most requests in the US are withdrawn — a developer tests a site and moves on.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

What kind of power is asking to connect

  • Natural gas 68%
  • Wind 23%
  • Solar 9%

By capacity requested. Data as of 14 October 2026.

All the numbers

24 requests ever filed
Pending applications
5
of 24 ever filed
Capacity queued
2.2 GW
requested, not committed
Already built
1.4 GW
10 projects connected
Built vs decided
52.6%
9 withdrawn
Median wait
1.9 yr
for applications still pending
Connected capacity
1.3 GW
indicator, see note

Source: interconnection queues published by SPP, WAPA-IS. 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
Built101.4 GW41.7%
Still waiting52.2 GW20.8%
Withdrawn91.6 GW37.5%
Paused0—0.0%

Waiting to connect, by type of power

TypeProjectsCapacity requested
Natural gas21.5 GW
Wind2506 MW
Solar1200 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
SPPSPP 2028 CPP Interconnection Cluster Study (ICS) application window
Definitive Interconnection System Impact Study cluster, post Order 2023 compliance.
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
GEN-2024-082Natural gas745 MWactive2024-10SPP
GEN-2024-081Natural gas745 MWactive2024-10SPP
GEN-2015-046Wind300 MWcompleted2015-10SPP
GEN-2017-048Wind300 MWwithdrawn2017-05SPP
GEN-2018-067Wind255 MWactive2018-10SPP
GI-1503Wind251 MWactive2015-03WAPA-IS
GEN-2022-083Natural gas250 MWcompleted2022-10SPP
GEN-2022-010Natural gas250 MWcompleted2022-05SPP
GEN-2023-097Batteries250 MWwithdrawn2023-10SPP
GI-1006Wind250 MWwithdrawn2010-06WAPA-IS
GI-1211Wind250 MWwithdrawn2012-08WAPA-IS
GI-1305Wind250 MWwithdrawn2013-05WAPA-IS
GEN-2024-329Solar200 MWactive2025-03SPP
GEN-2022-037Wind181 MWwithdrawn2022-06SPP
GI-1410Wind150 MWcompleted2014-06WAPA-IS

How Williams County compares

#171 in the US · #1 in ND

Williams County ranks #171 of 1,607 US counties by power waiting to connect, and #1 of 17 in North Dakota.

CountyWaitingCapacity queued
Cass County41.1 GW
Mercer County3534 MW
Morton County4450 MW
Stutsman County2447 MW
Oliver County2404 MW
Ward County3400 MW
Stark County2332 MW
Dickey County1300 MW

Common questions about power in Williams County

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

The median wait for a project still in the interconnection queue in Williams County is 1.9 years. Across the US, most large loads are quoted three to seven years depending on the market and whether network upgrades are needed. 10 projects in Williams County have reached energization and 9 were withdrawn, so the withdrawal rate here is a better guide to risk than any single quoted timeline.

How much capacity is available in Williams County, ND?

2.2 GW is currently requested across 5 active interconnection requests, and 1.4 GW 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 Williams County, ND 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 North Dakota policy page.

Where does the data on this page come from?

The interconnection queue published by the transmission providers serving Williams County — SPP, WAPA-IS — parsed and normalised by Watt Street. Every figure carries the date it was true. Data as of 14 October 2026.

Go deeper on Williams 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 Williams County on the map County reports All of North Dakota