BUTTE -While questions and concerns still persist over a proposed data center that is considering opening here at an industrial park near Butte, the city has formed a special committee to try to address those concerns.
“At what point do you get concerned about the water usage, because we’re going to try to do economic development,” Committee Chairman Brian Sullivan said during the meeting on Tuesday.
WATCH: A proposed data center could bring economic opportunities, but residents want answers about water usage and utility impacts first
More than a dozen members of the Ad Hoc Data Center Impact Committee held a public hearing recently to discuss what a new data center may do to utility bills and water usage. The committee was formed after the Washington-based Sabey Data Centers entered a land-sale agreement with the county to possibly build a center on a 600-acre site at Montana Connections.
RELATED: Should Butte embrace a billion-dollar data center project? Community members are asking tough questions about electricity and water usage (Oct. 20, 2025)
“Just to take that factual information and be able to present it to the council and then the council can make an educated decision,” Butte Chief Executive J.P. Gallagher said.
Addressing concerns of water usage, the committee said the company uses a closed-loop liquid cooling system. Sabey has said it would use less than 30 million gallons of water annually, coming from Silver Lake.
“We’re going to be utilizing our Silver Lake water system, which is totally capable of providing that water, and it will not deplete it,” Gallagher said.
Some residents left the meeting feeling more assured about the project.
“I feel a lot better after seeing the conversation that's going on and the work that's going into it,” Heidi Noyes said.
Others are still skeptical.
“It’s a pig in a poke right now. We don’t have good data yet from Sabey. Sabey needs to be up front, transparent, and honest with the people of Butte, Montana,” Butte Watchdog member Sister Mary Jo McDonald said.
A final decision on the data center building at the industrial park is expected in February.
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