BSDI's 5,000-acre Campus to Redefine Montana Telco Landscape
Big Sky Digital Infrastructure (BSDI), part of Quantica Infrastructure, has revealed plans for a major expansion in Montana.
The flagship energy and digital infrastructure project will transform a 5,000-acre site near Billings into a high-capacity data campus.
This development is designed to integrate renewable energy, battery storage and strategic long-haul fibre connectivity to support telecommunications.
The Big Sky Campus, as it will be called, aims to initially provide 500MW of renewable energy capacity for data centre operations, with plans to expand up to 1GW during subsequent phases. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2026.
Damon Obie, Co-Founder of BSDI and local to Montana, highlights the project's significance: “Montana has always been a state that builds its future on the strength of its people and natural resources."
He adds: "The Big Sky Campus represents a unique opportunity to build on the industries that powered our history with the digital economy that will define our future. This project is about creating opportunities for Montanans, so our communities can thrive in the digital age while staying true to our values and heritage.”
Renewable energy and telecommunication integration
The development promises to offer telecommunications operators a complete package with powered land, renewable integration and fibre infrastructure.
This campus will feature large-scale renewable energy generation in tandem with integrated battery storage and traditional grid access.
This hybrid energy model aims to assist operators in meeting both sustainability and reliability objectives, which are critical as demand for high-performance computing continues to escalate.
Charlie Baker, CFO at BSDI, says: “Having worked in the Montana power industry for over 20 years, I look forward to bringing BSDI’s approach of combining traditional grid power with planned renewable and battery energy storage to help customers meet sustainability and reliability goals."
He adds: "Improvements to in-state telecommunications that come with this will benefit the whole community, including schools, healthcare and community services.”
Enhancing connectivity
An essential facet of the Big Sky Campus is its plan for extensive telecommunications infrastructure.
The site will include hundreds of miles of fibre-ready underground conduit, linking the campus to major urban centres for low-latency connectivity and diverse routing options.
John Chesser, Co-Founder of BSDI, says: “A well-planned digital economy can support communities through employment opportunities and infrastructure investments. This project uses the rising demand for hyperscale, AI and cloud computing to deliver land, renewable energy and high-speed fibre in one integrated solution.”
Impact on the local economy
The Big Sky Campus is projected to stimulate economic growth through the creation of construction and long-term operational jobs, contributing to workforce development and technical training in Montana.
BSDI views this as a long-term economic investment, aligned with its focus on community development and digital inclusion.
Furthermore, the integration of the campus with current and prospective public infrastructures is expected to enhance regional connectivity, benefiting education, healthcare and public services through improved telecommunications and power resilience.
This initiative underscores a growing industry trend toward large, integrated data centre campuses that couple energy, fibre and land on a substantial scale.
As operators endeavour to cut emissions and boost efficiency, facilities offering renewable energy alongside grid access stand to become increasingly alluring.
Montana's new campus, upon reaching operational capability, will position the state as a competitive locale for digital infrastructure, catering to the needs of hyperscalers, AI workloads and high-density computing environments.