The Buildout

American Buildout

Vol. I · No. 1
Covering America’s infrastructure buildout.
UpdatedSunday, October 25, 2026

Buildout Tracker

Quantica Big Sky Campus

Buildout Tracker (beta): Quantica’s 1,100 MW Big Sky Campus near Broadview, Montana has a NorthWestern Energy letter of intent and interconnection filings for up to 7,235 MW of developer-built power, a water well in state review to Nov. 6 and a county road agreement up Oct. 27 — while a second citizen initiative to require two-thirds voter approval for data centers is before the county.

By Ed Moltzen · October 25, 2026

Buildout TrackerBeta

Quantica Big Sky Campus

By Ed Moltzen · Tracker update Oct. 25, 2026 · Broadview, Yellowstone County, Montana
Developer Big Sky Digital Infrastructure LLC, a Quantica Infrastructure company (EnCap Investments) Tenant None announced Location About 3.5 miles southeast of Broadview, Yellowstone County; 30 miles north of Billings Power 1,100 MW campus; NorthWestern LOI for 500 MW rising to 1 GW; interconnection applications for up to 7,235 MW of developer-built generation Stated investment Not disclosed Status Pre-construction; well permit in DEQ review; county road agreement up Oct. 27; second ballot initiative before the county

Big Sky Digital Infrastructure, the Quantica Infrastructure platform backed by EnCap Investments, is planning a 1,100-megawatt data center campus on about 5,100 acres near Broadview, with the first building expected to be operational in 2029. NorthWestern Energy signed a letter of intent on July 30, 2025 to serve a Phase 1 load of 500 MW growing to 1 gigawatt through its regulated business, subject to regulatory review, with initial service as early as 2026 and full Phase 1 by 2030. On May 20, 2026 Quantica filed interconnection applications with NorthWestern for up to 7,235 MW of additional renewable, firming and battery capacity that it says it will build and pay for so that NorthWestern’s ratepayers do not carry the cost; firming options under discussion with the state include natural gas and geothermal. The company’s water plan calls for a well into the Madison Aquifer 4,000 to 5,000 feet down, pumping no more than 160 gallons a minute, with up to 150,000 gallons a day during peak construction and about 20,000 gallons a day in operation using closed-loop cooling. The Montana Department of Environmental Quality opened the public water supply application for comment on Sept. 29 and has extended the comment period to Nov. 6.

The first physical work on the county record is the well. A draft Road Use and Maintenance Agreement between Yellowstone County and BSDI, dated Oct. 15 and on the commissioners’ Oct. 27 regular agenda, covers only the drilling phase: BSDI would build a private gravel road and drilling pad off Buffalo Trail Road, fund a publicly bid cement-stabilization of about a mile of Heiken Road by April 15, 2027, post a $250,000 maintenance bond and keep construction traffic to the Heiken–Buffalo Trail haul route, with road work anticipated from Nov. 1 and 80 to 100 days of drilling. Opposition has run through the ballot. In July the commissioners directed the county attorney to ask a court to rule on the validity of a citizen ordinance that would require a countywide vote for any data center, and on Aug. 4 the county attorney told the board that under a 2025 change in state law the signature deadline for that petition had likely passed on July 13. A second petition, Proposed Ordinance No. 2026-02, would require two-thirds voter approval for any new, expanded or existing data center, impose interim zoning and go to voters May 4, 2027; it needs 27,600 signatures, and “Petition – Validity of Initiative” was the county attorney’s action item on Oct. 6, for which minutes are not yet posted. On Sept. 22 the commissioners, stating they take no position on data centers, asked the county’s legislative delegation to refine the 2025 Right to Compute Act so it does not displace county zoning and permitting authority.

Project status

Tracker update: Oct. 25, 2026

Status board

FundingNot disclosed

No project cost, financing or tenant has been announced. Quantica says it will pay for and build the added generation. EnCap Investments’ Energy Transition arm is the only capital source named.

Local / grid approvalsIn review

NorthWestern LOI (July 2025) and interconnection applications (May 2026). DEQ public water supply well review open to Nov. 6. County road agreement for the drilling phase on the Oct. 27 agenda. No county zoning applies to the site; the county says the Right to Compute Act constrains it.

Public oppositionContested

Two citizen initiatives to require countywide votes on data centers. The county sued over the first in July; the county attorney says its signature window likely closed July 13. The second, aimed at a May 4, 2027 election, was before the board Oct. 6. 36 people commented at the Aug. 18 meeting.

Delays / withdrawalsNone on record

First building still stated for 2029. The 2025 release said construction would begin in 2026; the county record shows only well-drilling road work anticipated from Nov. 1.

Stage gauge

  1. 1AnnouncedBSDI campus, Aug. 4, 2025
  2. 2Utility LOINorthWestern, July 30, 2025
  3. 3Interconnection filedUp to 7,235 MW, May 20, 2026
  4. 4Labor agreementBuilding trades MOU, June 17, 2026
  5. 5Water permitDEQ comment to Nov. 6, 2026
  6. 6Site accessRoad agreement, Oct. 27 agenda; drilling from Nov. 2026
  7. 7Power service agreementNot announced; regulatory review pending
  8. 8First building online2029, per Quantica
CompleteIn progressNot started

By the numbers

1,100MWCampus capacity, per Quantica
5,100Acres, about 30 miles north of Billings
7,235MWMaximum added generation in interconnection applications
20,000Gallons per day in operation; up to 150,000 in peak construction
27,600Signatures required for the second initiative (25 percent of voters)
2029First building operational, per Quantica
Site

The campus sits about 3.5 miles southeast of Broadview, next to a major substation, highways and rail, with hundreds of miles of fiber-ready underground conduit planned. The proposed public water supply well is in the NE¼ of the SW¼ of Section 9, T3N R23E, about half a mile east of Buffalo Trail Road; the county says the shallower Eagle Sandstone aquifer supplies most nearby wells and the Madison target is about 1,000 feet deeper. Access for the drilling phase runs about a mile on Heiken Road from U.S. 3 and about four miles south on Buffalo Trail Road. Because the campus would serve at least 25 people for more than six months a year, state law treats its water system as a public water supply; DEQ reviews quality and DNRC reviews quantity and water rights.

Timeline

  1. April 16, 2025Montana’s Right to Compute Act (MCA 2-10-201 to -207) takes effect.Montana Code Annotated / county letter
  2. July 28, 2025EnCap Investments launches Quantica Infrastructure.Quantica
  3. July 30, 2025NorthWestern Energy signs a letter of intent: 500 MW Phase 1 growing to 1 GW, service as early as 2026, full Phase 1 by 2030.NorthWestern Energy
  4. Aug. 4, 2025Quantica introduces Big Sky Digital Infrastructure: about 5,000 acres outside Billings, 500 MW of renewables and storage expandable to 1 GW, construction planned for 2026.Quantica
  5. May 20, 2026Quantica files interconnection applications with NorthWestern for up to 7,235 MW of developer-funded generation; campus stated at 1,100 MW on 5,100 acres; first building 2029.Quantica
  6. June 17, 2026Labor MOU with the Southeastern Montana Building and Construction Trades Council.Quantica
  7. July 7, 2026Commissioners vote unanimously to direct the county attorney to seek a court ruling on the validity of the first data center initiative, citing Treasure County v. Edland.County minutes
  8. Aug. 4, 2026County attorney tells the board the petition’s signature deadline under the 2025 statute likely expired July 13; a party filed a district court action Aug. 3.County minutes
  9. Aug. 11 and 18, 2026Sixteen, then 36, residents comment on the proposed data center at county meetings.County minutes
  10. Aug. 31, 2026BSDI publishes its water plan: 20,000 gallons a day in operation, 150,000 peak construction, Madison Aquifer well, 160 gpm.Quantica
  11. Sept. 3, 2026Commissioners’ discussion meeting takes a data center water and electricity presentation and an interim zoning item.County agenda
  12. Sept. 22, 2026Commissioners ask the county’s legislative delegation to refine the Right to Compute Act so it does not displace local zoning and permitting.County letter
  13. Sept. 29, 2026DEQ opens public comment on the Big Sky Campus public water supply well (categorical exclusion review); later extended to Nov. 6.Montana DEQ
  14. Oct. 6, 2026“Petition – Validity of Initiative” is the county attorney’s regular-agenda item; the packet carries Proposed Ordinance No. 2026-02, the two-thirds-vote Data Center Initiative for May 4, 2027. Minutes not posted.County agenda
  15. Oct. 20, 2026Draft Road Use and Maintenance Agreement with BSDI (Heiken Road and Buffalo Trail Road) appears on the consent agenda.County agenda
  16. Oct. 27, 2026Road agreement returns as a regular-agenda item; road work anticipated from Nov. 1, drilling 80 to 100 days.County agenda / draft agreement
  17. Nov. 6, 2026DEQ comment period on the well closes.Montana DEQ
  18. May 4, 2027Election date targeted by the second initiative, if it qualifies.Petition

Sources

  1. Quantica Infrastructure — Quantica Files Interconnection Applications to Expand Power Generation for its Big Sky Digital Infrastructure Campus (May 20, 2026)
  2. Quantica Infrastructure — Big Sky Digital Infrastructure Outlines Water Use Plans (Aug. 31, 2026)
  3. Quantica Infrastructure — BSDI Supports Montana’s DEQ Review Process (Sept. 29, 2026)
  4. Quantica Infrastructure — Labor framework with Southeastern Montana Building and Construction Trades Council (June 17, 2026)
  5. Quantica Infrastructure — Quantica Introduces Big Sky Digital Infrastructure (Aug. 4, 2025)
  6. Quantica Infrastructure — EnCap Investments LP Launches Quantica Infrastructure (July 28, 2025)
  7. NorthWestern Energy — Signs Letter of Intent to Serve Quantica Infrastructure’s Montana Data Center Development (July 30, 2025)
  8. Montana DEQ — DEQ Requests Public Comment on Quantica Big Sky Campus Proposed Well (Sept. 29, 2026)
  9. Montana DEQ — Public comment page, Quantica Big Sky Campus Public Water Well (comment period extended to Nov. 6, 2026)
  10. Yellowstone County Board of Commissioners — Minutes, July 7, 2026
  11. Yellowstone County Board of Commissioners — Minutes, Aug. 4, 2026
  12. Yellowstone County Board of Commissioners — Minutes, Aug. 11, 2026
  13. Yellowstone County Board of Commissioners — Minutes, Aug. 18, 2026
  14. Yellowstone County Board of Commissioners — Discussion meeting agenda packet, Sept. 3, 2026
  15. Yellowstone County Board of Commissioners — Letter to the Yellowstone County legislative delegation on the Right to Compute Act (Sept. 22, 2026)
  16. Yellowstone County Board of Commissioners — Agenda, Oct. 6, 2026
  17. Yellowstone County — Petition to Place Proposed Ordinance No. 2026-02 (Data Center Initiative) on the ballot
  18. Yellowstone County — Proposed final draft Road Use and Maintenance Agreement with Big Sky Digital Infrastructure LLC (Oct. 15, 2026)
  19. Yellowstone County Board of Commissioners — Agenda, Oct. 27, 2026
  20. Montana Code Annotated — 2-10-201, Right to Compute Act (Ch. 150, Laws of 2025)
Share
Ad slot · in-article

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

B

American Buildout Podcast

Episode player

▶
--:-- / --:--
Coming soonAmerican Buildout Podcast