BISMARCK — Basin Electric Power Cooperative and NextEra Energy Resources, LLC announced they have signed a memorandum of understanding to explore the joint development of a new combined-cycle natural gas-fueled generation facility in Basin Electric’s North Dakota service territory. The project would serve as the foundation for a multi-gigawatt data center campus.

In October, the companies submitted an application to the Southwest Power Pool Expedited Resource Adequacy Study process to evaluate interconnection and transmission requirements, a key milestone in advancing the project, according to information from Basin Electric.

With a planned capacity of about 1,450 megawatts, the proposed facility would help meet demand from large-scale technology infrastructure such as data centers.

“This is a win-win for North Dakota,” North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong said in a statement on the project. “We’ve always been a leader in responsible growth. By working with industry leaders like NextEra Energy Resources and Basin Electric, we’re ensuring North Dakota remains at the forefront of innovation and powering America’s growth – creating jobs, attracting technology investment and strengthening our communities for generations to come.”

“North Dakota is seeing strong interest from technology and industrial companies, and our Large Load Commercial Program ensures we can meet that demand responsibly,” said Basin Electric CEO and General Manager Todd Brickhouse. “This project, developed through the Large Load Commercial Program, creates the framework needed to serve new, high-demand energy users, like data centers, while insulating existing cooperative members from significant cost increases.”

“This structure where data centers essentially fund their own generation, which we are using nationwide, and most recently in Iowa at our Duane Arnold facility, enables North Dakota to attract technology infrastructure, creating thousands of jobs and billions in economic impact,” said NextEra Energy Resources President and CEO Brian Bolster.

Since 2003, NextEra Energy Resources has invested more than $3.7 billion in energy infrastructure across the state.