South Dakota: data centers & your electric bill
As of October 1, 2026, AI GridWatch tracks 3 data center moratoriums or pushback actions in South Dakota: 1 in force, 2 expired, rejected or rescinded. The state has 10 tracked data center facilities using an estimated 0.1 TWh of electricity a year.
Everything GridWatch tracks in South Dakota on one page — proposed projects, moratoriums, permits, officials, and the 2026 ballot.
Subscribe by RSS — moratorium changes and community headlines for South Dakota.
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 South Dakota (2)
0 still live · 2 decided or withdrawn.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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini Sioux Falls Technology Park | Sioux Falls (Minnehaha County) | 500 MW | Gemini Data Center SD LLC | Approved | Source |
| Applied Digital Deuel County (withdrawn) | Toronto (Deuel County) | 430 MW | Applied Digital | Withdrawn | Source |
2Pushback already happening in South Dakota
| Where | Level | Status | Note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yankton County | County | Enactedexpires 2027-01-21 | 6-month moratorium on data centers and Bitcoin mining facilities, voted unanimously; can be extended another 6 months if permanent ordinance not completed. Planning and Zoning Commission directed to draft ordinance | SourceNews read 2026-09-07 |
| Lincoln County | County | Defeatedterm not documented | Commissioner Joel Arends proposed moratorium on hyperscale data centers in Lincoln County-Sioux Falls joint jurisdictional area twice: first attempt died for lack of a second (Feb 24); second attempt to schedule a joint hearing defeated 3-2 (Aug 25). Both bodies agreed to reconvene Oct 27 to discuss data center issues | SourceNews read 2026-09-07 |
| Minnehaha County | County | Under Reviewterm not documented | Planning Commission reviewed draft data center ordinance that would outright prohibit hyperscale facilities (500,000+ sq ft); smaller data centers allowed only in commercial/industrial zones with half-mile dwelling setback. Draft sent back for revision; final approval likely months away | SourceNews read 2026-09-07 |
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 South Dakota
GridWatch does not yet track a named hyperscale campus in South Dakota, but that does not mean the state has none. DataCenterMap keeps a public directory of existing facilities — street addresses included — for South Dakota.
Browse the South Dakota 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.
4Your regulator
South Dakota Public Utilities Commission — website · file a complaint
Official state energy data: EIA South Dakota electricity profile — generation, prices, and consumption from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
5Where the South Dakota paper trail lives
Air & environmental permits: South Dakota DANR — Air Quality Program
No searchable register. South Dakota 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: MISO (Midwest & Gulf) · Southwest Power Pool (Plains)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | Larry Rhoden Republican · Governor | No documented action on data centers located | site · contact |
| — | John Thune Republican · Senator · next on the ballot 2028 | No documented action on data centers located Mixed Says data centers should be self-sufficient in power and should not be built where there is no local support, while pushing permitting reform to meet data-center-driven demand. sources | site · contact |
| — | Mike Rounds Republican · Senator · on the 2026 ballot | No documented action on data centers located Mixed Told KOTA that data centers should go only where local residents actively welcome them, and predicted most new data centers will eventually be built in space. sources | site · contact |
| — | Dusty Johnson Republican · Representative At-Large | 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 R+15 · Seat held by Mike Rounds (Republican) · Incumbent renominated
Mike Rounds (Republican) · incumbent No record found
No documented statement or action on data centers located. Not scored — see how this page treats silence.
Tech & utility PAC money: $23,500 from 7 committees (FEC, cycle 2026, pulled 2026-08-26) — FEC record
Brian Bengs (Independent) 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).
82026 U.S. House races in South Dakota (1)
A documented data-center record exists in 0 of 1 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| SD-AL | R+15 | Dusty Johnson | Marty Jackley Nikki Gronli |
9Latest South Dakota 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: South Dakota Municipal League