Data Center Census

Ellendale, Dickey County, ND

Polaris Forge 1

Also known as Applied Digital Ellendale campus

OperatingBuilding 1 (100 MW) fully energized Nov 2025; Buildings 2–3 under construction/planned
  1. Rumored
  2. Proposed
  3. Approved
  4. Under construction
  5. Operating

Applied Digital's 400 MW AI data center campus in Ellendale, North Dakota, fully leased to CoreWeave under 15-year agreements, on a site that began in 2023 as a cryptocurrency hosting facility. The first 100 MW building was fully ready for service in November 2025; a 150 MW second building and 150 MW third building are slated for 2026 and 2027. Applied Digital says the campus could scale to 1 GW.

Key facts

Size & schedule

Planned capacity1 GW [2]
company says campus designed to scale to 1 GW over time
IT load400 MW [1]
critical IT load, fully contracted to CoreWeave
Phase 1 capacity100 MW [1]
Building 1
Buildings3 [2]
100 MW, 150 MW and 150 MW buildings
Target completionFull capacity mid-to-late 2027 [5]

Power

UtilityMontana-Dakota Utilities [4]
Grid operatorMISO [9]
stated for the Applied Digital Ellendale load when the PSC approved the MDU electric service agreement in 2023
Source excerpt
“The Applied Digital load will be purchased from the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) market and will not impact Montana-Dakota customers' power supply.”
Power supplyGrid power, which the company and city describe as excess wind power [5]
Air permitND DEQ Air Pollution Control Permit to Construct ACP-18296 v1.0 (synthetic minor) for the ELN Generation Plant, 9663 87th Ave. SE, Ellendale; posted by DEQ as a draft [10]
application dated December 4, 2024, with June 28, 2025 modeling support
Source excerpt
“Permit Number: ACP-18296 v1.0 Permit Description: Synthetic Minor Source Name & Location: ELN Generation Plant 9663 87th Ave. SE Ellendale, ND 58436”

Water

Coolingclosed-loop recirculating water; company calls it waterless cooling [6]

Figures are as stated by the cited source. Where sources disagree, each figure is shown.

Timeline

  1. Construction begins at the Ellendale campus [3]

  2. North Dakota Public Service Commission unanimously approves Montana-Dakota Utilities' electric service agreement to serve Applied Digital's data center near Ellendale [9]

  3. Applied Digital petitions to annex the data center into the city of Ellendale [7]

  4. Applied Digital signs 250 MW of 15-year leases with CoreWeave (~$7 billion) [3]

  5. CoreWeave signs additional 150 MW lease, bringing Polaris Forge 1 to 400 MW [2]

  6. Phase I of Building 1 reaches ready for service [1]

  7. Phase II ready for service; Building 1 fully energized at 100 MW [1]

  8. Dickey County closes several roads damaged by construction traffic [8]

Issues raised

  • Construction traffic has damaged county roads, leading to closures; repairs funded jointly by state grant, city, county and Applied Digital [8]
  • Rents in Ellendale have roughly doubled and some lower-income families have moved, per South Dakota Searchlight [4]
  • Residents report an audible hum from the site's first (crypto) facility within about a mile [4]
  • Montana-Dakota Utilities customers have received rate credits tied to the data center load [4][5]

Sources

  1. Applied Digital Completes Phase II Ready for Service at Polaris Forge 1, Fully Energizing First 100 MW Building
    Applied Digital · Nov 24, 2025 · company
  2. Applied Digital Finalizes Additional 150MW Lease with CoreWeave in North Dakota
    Applied Digital · Aug 29, 2025 · company
  3. Applied Digital signs 250MW agreement with CoreWeave for capacity at Ellendale campus, North Dakota
    DatacenterDynamics · Jun 2, 2025 · news
  4. North Dakota town serves as an example of the promise and perils of data centers for South Dakota
    South Dakota Searchlight · Jan 30, 2026 · news
  5. Ellendale acts as test case for data centers
    KFYR-TV · Mar 6, 2026 · news
  6. DCL: Applied Digital Answers Ellendale AI Data Center Questions on Roads and Water
    KSJB AM 600 · Jun 4, 2026 · news
  7. Data center requests annexation into Ellendale
    North Dakota Monitor · Dec 10, 2024 · news
  8. Vehicles tied to AI data center construction causing severe road damage in Dickey County
    KFGO · Apr 21, 2026 · news
  9. MDU Resources Subsidiary Receives Regulatory Approval to Serve Large Data Center Electric Load
    MDU Resources (PR Newswire) · Jun 6, 2023 · company
  10. Air Pollution Control Permit to Construct ACP-18296 v1.0 (draft)
    North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality · government