Maine: data centers & your electric bill
As of October 1, 2026, AI GridWatch tracks 11 data center moratoriums or pushback actions in Maine: 8 in force, 2 proposed, 1 expired, rejected or rescinded. The state has 8 tracked data center facilities using an estimated 0.1 TWh of electricity a year.
Everything GridWatch tracks in Maine on one page — proposed projects, moratoriums, permits, officials, and the 2026 ballot.
Subscribe by RSS — moratorium changes and community headlines for Maine.
As of July 2026 (3m ago) · changes over months · Source: U.S. Data Center Power Map by State — ElectricChoice.com compilation (updated July 2026; CC-BY 4.0). Underlying load research: LBNL 2024 US Data Center Energy Usage Report; rates: EIA
Facility counts vary by directory because each one draws the boundary differently — DataCenterMap lists 44 in Alabama where this table says 35, since it counts small network rooms alongside hyperscale campuses. Cite the TWh figure rather than the facility count when you can; it is the number that speaks to grid impact. Underlying load research is LBNL-2001637 (Dec 2024).
1Proposed data centers in Maine
GridWatch is not yet tracking a named project in Maine. That is a gap in our coverage, not evidence that nothing is proposed — most projects surface first in a zoning agenda, weeks before any reporting.
2Pushback already happening in Maine
| Where | Level | Status | Note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bangor | Local | Enactedexpires soon — 2026-10-10 | 180-day pause, 9-0. City cited lack of information about infrastructure impacts and no state-level framework to reference | SourceNews read 2026-08-13 |
| Maine (statewide) | State | Vetoedterm not documented | LD 307 would have paused 20+ MW facilities to Nov 2027; governor vetoed | SourceRoundup read 2026-08-04 |
| Sanford | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-01-31 | 91-day emergency moratorium enacted May 19, 2026, halting a proposed Mousam River data center project; extended unanimously for 180 more days on Aug 5, 2026. | SourceNews read 2026-08-12 |
| Eastport | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-02-08 | 180-day moratorium, unanimous, on permits for industrial data centers on land or underwater — aimed at DeepGreen's tidal-powered proposal off Kendell Head. Buys time to work through two citizen-initiated zoning ordinances | SourceNews read 2026-08-23 |
| North Berwick | Local | Proposedterm not documented | Select Board placed a permanent data center ban (facilities ≥25,000 sq ft) on the November 2026 ballot as a zoning amendment. Skipped a moratorium step; voters will decide. | SourceNews read 2026-09-06 |
| Gorham | Local | Enactedexpires soon — 2026-11-29 | Town Council voted 7-0 for 180-day moratorium on data center development; extendable another 180 days. Council later voted (Sep 4) to consider permanent ban | SourceNews read 2026-09-06 |
| Ellsworth | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-02-13 | 180-day moratorium approved 4-1; preemptive — no data center inquiries received. Gives city time to study impacts and develop recommendations. Part of wave of Maine municipal moratoriums after governor vetoed statewide DC moratorium in April. | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Brunswick | Town | Enactedexpires soon — 2026-11-29 | 180-day moratorium on data centers >= 1 MW; unanimous vote; stricter than vetoed state bill (20 MW threshold) | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Scarborough | Town | Enactedexpires soon — 2026-11-30 | 180-day moratorium on data center construction; unanimous vote; retroactively applies to applications submitted on or after April 1 | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Westbrook | City | Enactedexpires soon — 2026-11-28 | 180-day moratorium on siting, permitting, construction and operation of data centers regardless of MW; unanimous vote | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Biddeford | City | Proposedno end date — permanent | Planning Board unanimously recommended permanent ban on data centers; City Council voted 8-1 Jun 3 to advance amendments; final Council vote expected November. Would prohibit data centers in all zoning districts | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
As of August 2026 (2m ago) · changes weekly — re-check before citing
Illustrative rather than exhaustive — dozens of localities churn weekly, and this tracks the ones we have read a source for. **Each row carries its own provenance.** Rows showing a verification date link to the ordinance, the enacting body's own page, or a datable report of the vote, and were read on that date. Rows marked *unverified* came from bulk compilation and have not been checked against a primary source — the locality, the year, and the status may all be off. Verify one of those with the town clerk before citing it as precedent. **Expiry is derived, not asserted.** A row with a documented end date flips to *Expired* on its own once that date passes. A time-limited moratorium whose start date was never documented keeps showing as enacted — that is a known gap, not a claim that it is still in force. Moratoriums are also routinely extended, so an expiry date is the earliest it could have ended, not proof that it did.
3Every data center already built in Maine
GridWatch does not yet track a named hyperscale campus in Maine, but that does not mean the state has none. DataCenterMap keeps a public directory of existing facilities — street addresses included — for Maine.
Two caveats before you cite it at a hearing: it lists facilities that already exist, so a newly proposed campus will not appear; and it counts a small network room the same as a hyperscale campus, so the facility count is not a measure of power draw or community impact.
4Your regulator
Maine Public Utilities Commission — website · file a complaint
Official state energy data: EIA Maine electricity profile — generation, prices, and consumption from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
5Where the Maine paper trail lives
Air & environmental permits: Maine DEP — Bureau of Air Quality
No searchable register. Maine does not publish a permit database you can query. A public-records request to the agency is the only route to the file.
Grid interconnection queue: ISO New England
A routing hint only — several states are split between markets, and the serving utility is the only authority on which queue a given site is in.
These are places to look, not evidence that anything has been filed. Links were checked on 2026-08-21; search links are queries, not records.
6Your federal delegation and governor
Grades cross party — this is an issue axis, not a partisan one. A blank grade means no documented action was located, never that the official is neutral.
| Grade | Official | Documented action (sourced) | Reach them |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | Janet Mills Democratic · Governor | Vetoed a statewide data-center moratorium bill (Apr 2026). — Rockefeller Institute — Updates on the Cloud: More Moratoriums (2026) | site · contact |
| — | Angus S., Jr. King Independent · Senator · next on the ballot 2030 | No documented action on data centers located Accelerate Has welcomed hydro-powered data-center projects at former Maine mill sites but has no located 2025-2026 bill, letter, or statement on data-center energy costs or siting. sources | site · contact |
| — | Susan M. Collins Republican · Senator · on the 2026 ballot | No documented action on data centers located Mixed Says data-center projects should be judged case by case, shares concern about their energy draw and cost pressure, and has favored siting them at former mill sites with hydropower. sources | site · contact |
| — | Chellie Pingree Democratic · Representative 1 | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | Jared F. Golden Democratic · Representative 2 | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
Roster: regenerated by scripts/refresh_officials.py (Senate XML + congress-legislators + current governors).
Write to your senators → Your senators in detail → Full officials scorecard → Find your state legislators →
72026 U.S. Senate race
PVI D+4 · Seat held by Susan Collins (Republican) · Incumbent renominated
Susan Collins (Republican) · incumbent Mixed
Says she shares concerns about data-center energy use and cost pressure, while attributing Maine's rate increases to state Democratic leadership.
- Voiced concern about data-center energy consumption and cost pressure and toured redevelopment sites with Energy Secretary Chris Wright, while blaming rising rates on Democratic state leaders. (2026 — source)
Tech & utility PAC money: $20,000 from 6 committees (FEC, cycle 2026, pulled 2026-08-26) — FEC record
Record read 2026-08-25.
Troy Jackson (Democratic) Guardrails
Would require data centers to cover their own power costs, pay fair taxes, use union labour and engage the host community.
- Set conditions for data centers: good-paying union jobs, fair tax payment, environmental protection, local community engagement, and covering their own power costs. (2026 — source)
Record read 2026-08-25.
Ballot roster: state candidate list (read 2026-08-25).
82026 U.S. House races in Maine (2)
A documented data-center record exists in 2 of 2 districts. A candidate with no badge colour has said nothing we could locate — that is a gap in the record, not a neutral position. ★ marks an incumbent.
| District | PVI | Incumbent | Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|
| ME-1 | D+11 | Chellie Pingree | Chellie Pingree ★ Ronald Russell |
| ME-2 | R+4 | Jared Golden | Matthew Dunlap Paul LePage |
The documented records (2 districts)
ME-1
Chellie Pingree (Democratic) · incumbent Guardrails
Believes Congress should assess environmental and consumer impacts and put strong protections in place
- Spokesperson said she believes Congress has a responsibility to assess environmental and consumer impacts of data center and AI expansion and put 'strong, science-based protections in place' (2025-12-08 — source)
- Voted yes on H.R. 9340, the Ratepayer Protection Act, which passed 417-3 (roll call 312). It directs state utility commissions to consider rate designs making data centers with 100 MW or more of peak demand at one site pay the full incremental cost of the generation and grid upgrades they require. A near-unanimous vote: shown on the record, not scored on its own. (2026-09-16 — source)
Record read 2026-09-11.
ME-2
Matthew Dunlap (Democratic) Guardrails
Favors benchmarks for worker benefits, ratepayer protection, and community benefits from data centers
- Campaign warned 'if we don't approach these projects deliberately they will jack up energy prices'; favors developing benchmarks and standards for worker benefits, ratepayer impact, and community benefits (2026-08-24 — source)
Record read 2026-09-11.
Paul LePage (Republican) Accelerate
Self-described 'big, big fan' of data centers; says they create jobs and should generate their own power
- Called himself a 'big, big fan of data centers' at former mill site; said they will create jobs and should generate their own power (2026-08-24 — source)
Record read 2026-09-11.
9Latest Maine data center news
A data center was proposed near you?
The free toolkit walks you through it in five steps: who's really behind the LLC, what it costs your community, what to do this week, and a downloadable action pack — speech, letters, flyer, and CBA targets included.
State municipal league: Maine Municipal Association