Rainbow (MT)

Brownfield

Great Falls, Cascade, Montana · NorthWestern Energy (MT Hydro)

Legacy capacity
37
MW

Rainbow (MT) is a former hydro site in Great Falls, Cascade, Montana, retired 2013-04-01. Retired generation sites are among the most attractive datacenter redevelopment targets: the existing interconnection was sized for roughly 37 MW of generation, so the grid hookup, transmission rights, and often cooling-water access are already in place — collapsing the speed-to-power timeline versus a greenfield build.

Former use & capacity

Former useformer hydro site
Site typeretired_plant
Existing capacity37 MW
Retirement date2013-04-01
EIA plant ID#2193

Grid hookup & remediation

Nearest substation0.5 mi
OperatorNorthWestern Energy (MT Hydro)
Operator address336 Rainbow Dam Road, Great Falls, MT, 59404
Why this site is datacenter-attractive: a former hydro site of this scale leaves behind a high-capacity grid interconnection that a new load can re-use, frequently shaving years off the interconnection queue. Retired-plant sites also tend to be already zoned for heavy industrial use with established road, rail, and water infrastructure.

Nearby datacenter candidate sites

Scored candidate sites near Rainbow (MT), ranked by DC Readiness.

Candidate sites near Rainbow (MT)
SiteTypeStateCountyVoltageCapacityQueue waitScore
TAP203658Substation-AdjacentMTCascade County230 kV300 MW1.1 yrs72.6
HIGHWOOD GENERATING STATIONSubstation-AdjacentMTCascade County230 kV300 MW1.1 yrs71.4
UNKNOWN206326Substation-AdjacentMTCascade County230 kV300 MW1.1 yrs71.4
GREAT FALLS (RAINBOW)Substation-AdjacentMTCascade County230 kV300 MW1.1 yrs71.0
UNKNOWN206569Substation-AdjacentMTCascade County115 kV100 MW1.1 yrs70.5
UNKNOWN204147Substation-AdjacentMTCascade County115 kV100 MW1.1 yrs69.7
UNKNOWN201836Substation-AdjacentMTCascade County115 kV100 MW1.1 yrs69.3
Greenfield (HAVRE / ASSINNIBOINE - UNKNOWN)GreenfieldMTChouteau County230 kV300 MW1.1 yrs69.1

See all datacenter sites in Montana

Dataset updated . Screening estimates derived from public data sources.

Brownfield attributes are derived from EIA retired-generator and EPA public data. Existing capacity reflects the retired plant's historical nameplate, not deliverable interconnection for a new load. Confirm reusable interconnection rights, remediation status, and site availability with the utility, ISO, and current owner.

Go deeper than the public screen

This page shows a public slice of the GridCensus dataset for Rainbow (MT), Great Falls, Cascade, Montana. Pro and Enterprise plans unlock the full 164,098-site catalog, raw sub-scores, parcel ownership, interconnection-queue detail, saved searches, and programmatic API access.