HOLDEN, Millard County – A major technology and energy project is about to break ground in Millard County.
A groundbreaking event was held Thursday afternoon for what developers say could become one of the most advanced data centers in the country.
Joule Capital Partners held the event just outside the town of Holden to mark the launch of its new Joule Energy and Data Center Campus.
It is a large-scale facility designed to support artificial intelligence and high-performance computing.
The company stated that the project represents a significant investment in Utah’s energy and technology future, which could bring new jobs, training opportunities and economic growth to rural Utah.
Unlike most data centers, which require large amounts of electricity from public utilities, Joule plans to produce its own power on site rather than relying on the local power grid.
Company executives said this approach will prevent strain on existing energy infrastructure and protect residents from higher energy costs.
“It really takes away from the resources that local residents need and increases energy costs for everyone else,” said Brock Andrus, co-CEO of Joule Capital Partners. “So we said, let’s build our own energy production plants here on these beautiful 4,000 hectares.”
The company plans to use natural gas to power the first phase of the project, with future phases expected to expand energy capacity as demand for AI grows.
Millard County Commissioner Bill Wright said the data center could help keep more young people in the county by providing good-paying tech jobs and new career paths.
“We’re looking forward to taking new technologies and really merging them with what we do,” says Wright, who hopes the company will work with local schools to create job training and apprenticeships.
Joel Ferry, executive director of the Utah Department of Natural Resources, said the project is the type of development that can benefit rural communities.
“These data centers are now air-cooled. They are no longer water-cooled, and so their water use is reduced to minimal amounts. It’s the kind of project that will bring jobs to rural Utah,” Ferry said.
Company representatives said they hope to begin first energy production by the end of 2026, acknowledging the timeline is ambitious but achievable.
The groundbreaking Thursday marks phase one, with additional phases planned for the coming years as AI technology evolves and demand for data increases.
For a community long rooted in agriculture, the project marks a shift toward a new kind of growth, one fueled by data and innovation rather than crops and livestock.
“You need some kind of growth to survive these days,” Commissioner Wright said. “We like being in the middle of nowhere. We have traditions. We don’t really want to change our traditions, but we are looking ahead. My experience with Joule and where they are going is a really good and positive experience.”
Joule representatives said the demand for these types of data centers will only increase as artificial intelligence continues to grow.
Andrus believes that now is the time to prepare for that growth.
“Today is a very special day, not just for Joule, but for the community, the state and frankly for the United States,” Andrus said. “We can’t afford to fall behind. We really can’t. Not just as a state, but as a country. It’s too important, and we’re doing everything we can here at Joule on this 4,000-acre site to unleash the power of energy so we can ensure that we have sovereign, secure AI models that keep America’s citizens safe and secure.”
Key points for this article were generated using large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article itself is written exclusively by humans.
