data centers

Kevin Hardy (States Newsroom) As Americans grow increasingly frustrated over their electricity bills, states are trying to keep the nation’s growing number of data centers from causing higher energy costs for consumers. For years, many states competed aggressively to land data centers, sprawling campuses full of the computer servers that store and transmit the data behind apps and websites. But .

Karin Kirk writes, "In Montana, we should learn from the mistakes happening elsewhere. We need transparency, not secret deals. We need our PSC to listen to the public and make us their top priority."

The seven members of Gov. Tina Kotek’s new Data Center Advisory Committee will recommend regulations meant to protect energy and water amid rapid data center growth.

Jim Morton writes, "NorthWestern just raised rates --- again. We can’t afford more rate increases on behalf of data centers."

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries representatives expressed strong interest in Montana’s reliable energy resources, access to transmission, and favorable business climate for large-scale infrastructure and technology investment.

As tech startups are rushing to build large data centers across the nation, some Montana organizations are asking state energy regulators to require data centers to pay some of the costs instead of allowing NorthWestern Energy to give them a free pass.

Sarah Borduin writes, "I'm not interested in opposing the data centers in entirety, but I am interested in ensuring that what is promised is the reality. They shouldn’t raise our energy prices."

Ken Toole writes, "In the emerging world of huge data centers serving everything from artificial intelligence to cryptocurrency ponzi schemes, NorthWestern sees a new shiny object on the horizon: huge electric loads required by data centers."

As power-hungry data centers proliferate, states are searching for ways to protect utility customers from the steep costs of upgrading the electrical grid, trying instead to shift the cost to AI-driven tech companies.