Minnesota: data centers & your electric bill
As of October 1, 2026, AI GridWatch tracks 18 data center moratoriums or pushback actions in Minnesota: 18 in force. The state has 78 tracked data center facilities using an estimated 1.5 TWh of electricity a year.
Everything GridWatch tracks in Minnesota on one page — proposed projects, moratoriums, permits, officials, and the 2026 ballot.
Subscribe by RSS — moratorium changes and community headlines for Minnesota.
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 Minnesota (4)
3 still live · 1 decided or withdrawn. Each name links to the full dossier — ownership, intelligence log, and where to read the paper trail.
| Project | Where | Size | Behind it | Stage | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google Hermantown Campus | Hermantown | 278 ac | In review | Source read 2026-08-19 | |
| Inver Grove Heights Data Center | Inver Grove Heights | 5 MW | — | In review | Source read 2026-08-19 |
| Monticello Tech data center campus | Monticello (Wright County) | 547 ac | Monticello Tech (filing LLC) | In review | Source read 2026-08-14 |
| Meta Rosemount | Rosemount | 178 MW | Meta | Under construction | Source read 2026-08-14 |
2Pushback already happening in Minnesota
| Where | Level | Status | Note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inver Grove Heights | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-06-26 | 1-year moratorium, 3-2; freezes a proposed 55,000 sq ft / 5 MW project while staff study zoning, water and noise impacts. Developer QLevr has threatened a \$150M lawsuit | SourceNews read 2026-08-13 |
| Minneapolis | Local | Enactedexpires soon — 2026-11-21 | 6-month moratorium on data centers >350,000 sq ft, 8-5. Downtown core exempt. Zoning ordinance updates and environmental impact report due during the pause | SourceNews read 2026-08-13 |
| Eagan | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-02-17 | 1-year moratorium on data centers >20 MW or within 500 ft of residential, first MN city to pause. Under legal challenge — developer filed suit Jun 15 alleging city lacks authority to regulate electricity demand | SourceNews read 2026-08-13 |
| Carver | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-04-06 | 1-year moratorium, unanimous. Proactive — no pending data center project at time of vote | SourceNews read 2026-08-13 |
| Wright County | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-05-19 | Emergency 1-year moratorium (Ord. 26-2), unanimous. Applies to unincorporated areas only. Moratorium Workgroup formed Jun 16 to evaluate environmental, fiscal, infrastructure, and land use considerations | SourceOfficial read 2026-08-13 |
| Washington County | Local | Enactedfixed term, end date not recorded | 1-year moratorium on new data center applications in unincorporated areas, 4-1. Extended from originally proposed 6-month pause | SourceRoundup read 2026-08-13 |
| Hastings | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-08-17 | 1-year interim ordinance: no data center may be established, expanded or re-established anywhere in Hastings until Aug 17, 2027 unless the council rescinds it earlier. City code does not currently define or regulate data centers. Council took first action Aug 3 and held the public hearing and second reading Aug 17 | SourceNews read 2026-08-23 |
| Carlton County | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-08-24 | One-year interim ordinance, unanimous, effective immediately; bars approval of new data center development in every county township, including crypto mining and AI compute. Directs the planning commission to study whether county regulation is needed, with a progress report due back to the board by February 2027 | SourceNews read 2026-08-30 |
| Waite Park | City | Enactedexpires 2027-05-04 | 1-year moratorium on data center development, unanimous. Exempts telecom shelters under 300 sq ft. Staff to study impacts and draft regulations | SourceNews read 2026-09-06 |
| St. Joseph | Local | Enactedfixed term, end date not recorded | Mayor Adam Scepaniak enacted 1-year moratorium on data centers in May 2026. City's industrial park is in a wetland area. City plans to research data centers and examine other communities' approaches during pause. | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Pine County | County | Enactedexpires 2027-08-18 | Board adopted 12-month interim ordinance; initially passed 6-month version Jul 7, extended to 12 months at Aug 18 public hearing. Earlier attempt in May failed. Zoning Board tasked with studying regulations. | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Mankato | City | Enactedexpires 2027-07-13 | One-year moratorium on data centers and high-impact utility consumers to study localized impacts. | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Apple Valley | City | Enactedexpires 2027-07-09 | One-year moratorium on new data center development; follows denial of 1M sq ft proposal. | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Rosemount | City | Enactedexpires 2027-04-21 | Unanimous one-year moratorium (Ordinance No. 2026-03); existing Meta data center unaffected. | SourceOfficial read 2026-09-11 |
| Minnetrista | City | Enactedexpires 2027-08-03 | One-year moratorium and study on data centers; preemptive, no applications received. | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Elk River | City | Enactedexpires 2027-08-03 | Unanimous one-year moratorium after denying data center zoning application; applicant withdrew. | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Le Sueur County | County | Enactedexpires 2027-05-26 | Unanimous 12-month moratorium on data centers in unincorporated areas; preemptive, no proposals pending. | SourceNews read 2026-09-11 |
| Freeborn County | County | Enactedexpires 2027-08-19 | One-year moratorium on data center permits in unincorporated areas; extended Aug 18, 2026 for a second year through Aug 19, 2027. | SourceRoundup 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.
3Known data center campuses in Minnesota
| Operator | Location | Tenant | Filing LLC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meta | Rosemount | Meta | Codename shells: Greater Kudu, Raven Northbrook, Stadion, Wobniar, Pinnacle Mountain |
⏳ No verification date recorded · changes over months · Source: Operator ownership & filing-LLC naming patterns — compiled from operator releases and county filings, then checked against SEC EDGAR full-text search. Composite, not a single citation: look the entity up yourself before naming it in a filing
Each row carries its own attribution level — first-party rows come from the operator's own site, but colocation and REIT ownership was compiled from trade press and never passed an independent fact-check. Check the attribution column before citing a row.
4Every data center already built in Minnesota
The campuses above are the ones GridWatch tracks by operator and filing LLC. For the full inventory — street addresses of every existing facility, including the smaller colocation and network sites — DataCenterMap keeps a public directory for Minnesota.
Browse the Minnesota directory →
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.
5Your regulator
Minnesota Public Utilities Commission — website · file a complaint
Official state energy data: EIA Minnesota electricity profile — generation, prices, and consumption from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
6Where the Minnesota paper trail lives
Air & environmental permits: Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Searchable register: What's in My Neighborhood (permits by address) — a public database you can search by facility or permit number.
Grid interconnection queue: MISO (Midwest & Gulf)
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.
7Your 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | Tim Walz Democratic–Farmer–Labor · Governor | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | Amy Klobuchar Democratic · Senator · next on the ballot 2030 | No documented action on data centers located Guardrails Campaigning for governor, says data centers raise rates and have hurt the environment, calls for local control, transparency, and environmental standards, and backs Minnesota's 2025 law making data centers pay their full energy costs. sources | site · contact |
| A | Tina Smith Democratic · Senator · on the 2026 ballot | Cosponsored the Power for the People Act, making data-center operators pay the grid costs they create. — Sen. Welch joins bill so Americans aren't footing big data-center costs (2026) Guardrails Cosponsors the Power for the People Act, which would require data-center operators rather than consumers to pay for the energy infrastructure they need. sources | site · contact |
| — | Brad Finstad Republican · Representative 1 | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | Angie Craig Democratic · Representative 2 | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | Kelly Morrison Democratic · Representative 3 | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | Betty McCollum Democratic · Representative 4 | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | Ilhan Omar Democratic · Representative 5 | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | Tom Emmer Republican · Representative 6 | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | Michelle Fischbach Republican · Representative 7 | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | Pete Stauber Republican · Representative 8 | 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 →
82026 U.S. Senate race
PVI D+3 · Seat held by Tina Smith (DFL) · Incumbent retiring
Michele Tafoya (Republican) No record found
No documented statement or action on data centers located. Not scored — see how this page treats silence.
Peggy Flanagan (DFL) No record found
No documented statement or action on data centers located. Not scored — see how this page treats silence.
Ballot roster: state candidate list (read 2026-08-25).
92026 U.S. House races in Minnesota (8)
A documented data-center record exists in 7 of 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| MN-1 | R+6 | Brad Finstad | Brad Finstad ★ Jake Johnson |
| MN-2 | D+3 | open seat | Eric Pratt Matt Little |
| MN-3 | D+11 | open seat | Kelly Morrison Tyler Bass |
| MN-4 | D+18 | open seat | Betty McCollum Paul Wikstrom |
| MN-5 | D+32 | open seat | Ilhan Omar John Nagel |
| MN-6 | R+10 | Tom Emmer | Tom Emmer ★ Doug Chapin Kelly Doss |
| MN-7 | R+18 | Michelle Fischbach | Michelle Fischbach ★ Erik Osberg |
| MN-8 | R+7 | Pete Stauber | Pete Stauber ★ Trina Swanson |
The documented records (7 districts)
MN-1
Brad Finstad (Republican) · incumbent Mixed
Supports data centers for economic and national security value but emphasizes local control and corporate transparency about environmental impacts.
- Said data centers "can play an important role in our economic future and national security, but the decision...should be made by the people and local leaders who know their communities best, not handed down by Washington"; emphasized need for corporate transparency. (2026-09-01 — 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.
MN-3
Kelly Morrison (DFL) Consensus vote only
On the record only for voting yes on H.R. 9340, the Ratepayer Protection Act (417-3). No other data-center record located yet.
- 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 2026-09-22.
MN-4
Betty McCollum (DFL) Consensus vote only
On the record only for voting yes on H.R. 9340, the Ratepayer Protection Act (417-3). No other data-center record located yet.
- 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 2026-09-22.
MN-5
Ilhan Omar (DFL) Consensus vote only
On the record only for voting yes on H.R. 9340, the Ratepayer Protection Act (417-3). No other data-center record located yet.
- 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 2026-09-22.
MN-6
Tom Emmer (Republican) · incumbent Accelerate
Strongly backs data center buildout citing AI competition with China; as House Majority Whip, supported bringing Ratepayer Protection Act to floor vote.
- As House Majority Whip, supported bringing bipartisan Ratepayer Protection Act (HR 9340) to floor vote, requiring data centers to cover full incremental infrastructure costs; stated "I'm a true believer in local control." (2026-08-01 — source)
- Tweeted support for Trump's pro-data center position, saying China and U.S. adversaries "would love it if the United States was asleep at the wheel and stopped innovating and developing AI." (2026-09-01 — 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.
MN-7
Michelle Fischbach (Republican) · incumbent Consensus vote only
On the record only for voting yes on H.R. 9340, the Ratepayer Protection Act (417-3). No other data-center record located yet.
- 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 2026-09-22.
MN-8
Pete Stauber (Republican) · incumbent Mixed
Set four conditions for data center support: local community input, no rate increases, no tax increases, and projects must use their own water and energy.
- Stated four conditions for supporting data center projects: "The local community's got to have input. It can't increase rates, or taxes, and they have to use their own water and energy." (2026-08-01 — 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.
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State municipal league: League of Minnesota Cities