Data centers and new power in Thurston County, WA

427 MW of new power is waiting to connect to the grid in Thurston County, WA — 2 active requests. Typical wait: 4.0 years. 0 projects are built, 11 withdrawn. Data as of 14 October 2026.

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

427 MW
of new power is waiting to connect
2 projects asked. Not yet approved. Roughly what 342,000 homes use.
0 MW
has actually been built
0 projects switched on so far.
4.0 yrs
typical wait to plug in

Where every request ever filed here ended up

  • Still waiting 14%
  • Withdrawn 79%
  • Paused 7%

Most requests in the US are withdrawn — a developer tests a site and moves on.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

What kind of power is asking to connect

  • Solar 70%
  • Batteries 30%

By capacity requested. Data as of 14 October 2026.

All the numbers

14 requests ever filed
Pending applications
2
of 14 ever filed
Capacity queued
427 MW
requested, not committed
Already built
0 MW
0 projects connected
Built vs decided
0.0%
11 withdrawn
Median wait
4.0 yr
for applications still pending
Connected capacity
149 MW
indicator, see note

Source: interconnection queues published by PSE. 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
Built00 MW0.0%
Still waiting2427 MW14.3%
Withdrawn111.6 GW78.6%
Paused1—7.1%

Waiting to connect, by type of power

TypeProjectsCapacity requested
Solar1300 MW
Batteries1127 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 14 by size
ProjectTypeCapacityStatusFiledQueue
G0921Wind718 MWwithdrawn2023-09BPA
141Solar300 MWactive2024-02PSE
53Solar198 MWwithdrawn2017-10PSE
102Batteries150 MWsuspended2021-04PSE
112Batteries127 MWactive2021-06PSE
132Batteries127 MWwithdrawn2022-05PSE
63Solar105 MWwithdrawn2018-08PSE
118Batteries100 MWwithdrawn2021-08PSE
134Batteries100 MWwithdrawn2022-08PSE
82Batteries100 MWwithdrawn2020-05PSE
89Batteries100 MWwithdrawn2020-08PSE
62Batteries40 MWwithdrawn2018-08PSE
G0942Batteries20 MWwithdrawn2023-09BPA
G0830Batteries20 MWwithdrawn2022-12BPA

Big new power users asking to connect

3 on record

Requests to connect large new customers — data centers, factories, electrification — rather than power plants.

RequestCapacityStatusQueueStated use
Taylor Substation25 MWactiveBPAnot stated
Upriver McKenzie Reliability Improvement Project0 MWactiveBPAnot stated
Network Connection, 230 kV loop line—activeBPAnot stated

Most of these filings do not say what the power is for. “Not stated” is the filing's silence, not ours.

How Thurston County compares

#675 in the US · #20 in WA

Thurston County ranks #675 of 1,607 US counties by power waiting to connect, and #20 of 30 in Washington.

CountyWaitingCapacity queued
Benton County2010.9 GW
Yakima County146.5 GW
Klickitat County236.2 GW
Douglas County83.6 GW
Grant County123.5 GW
Lincoln County92.0 GW
Lewis County41.6 GW
Spokane County11973 MW

Common questions about power in Thurston County

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

The median wait for a project still in the interconnection queue in Thurston County is 4.0 years. Across the US, most large loads are quoted three to seven years depending on the market and whether network upgrades are needed. 0 projects in Thurston County have reached energization and 11 were withdrawn, so the withdrawal rate here is a better guide to risk than any single quoted timeline.

How much capacity is available in Thurston County, WA?

427 MW is currently requested across 2 active interconnection requests, and 0 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 Thurston County, WA 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 Washington policy page.

Where does the data on this page come from?

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

Go deeper on Thurston 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 Thurston County on the map County reports All of Washington