Applied Digital has secured more than 900 acres for the project and reached a power supply agreement with Cass County Electric Cooperative
In sum – what to know:
$3B AI campus in North Dakota – Applied Digital will break ground on Polaris Forge 2 in September 2025, a 280MW site with expansion potential, strengthening the state’s AI infrastructure footprint.
Operations to begin 2026 – Initial capacity is planned for 2026 with full buildout in 2027, adding more than 200 permanent jobs and long-term contractor opportunities.
U.S.-based data center developer Applied Digital Corporation announced plans to begin construction in September 2025 on Polaris Forge 2, a $3 billion data center campus near Harwood, North Dakota.
In a release, the company noted that the project, designed for 280 megawatts (MW) of capacity with room for future expansion, is expected to begin operations in 2026 and reach full capacity in early 2027.
The development marks the company’s second large-scale project in the state, following the Polaris Forge 1 facility in Ellendale. North Dakota has become an attractive location for such infrastructure due to its land availability, energy resources, and supportive regulatory environment.
“We believe Polaris Forge 2 represents the next stage in Applied Digital’s rapid growth and our position as a leader in delivering high-performance AI infrastructure,” said Wes Cummins, CEO of Applied Digital. “The demand for AI capacity continues to accelerate, and North Dakota continues to be one of the most strategic locations in the country to meet that need. We have strong interest from multiple parties and are in advanced negotiations with a U.S. based investment-grade hyperscaler for this campus, making it both timely and prudent to proceed with groundbreaking and site development. We believe this new campus will strengthen our operations, increase our ability to scale, and create lasting value for both our customers and the communities we serve.”
The Polaris Forge 2 campus will initially consist of two facilities with the option to expand further, the company said. Applied Digital has secured more than 900 acres for the project and reached a power supply agreement with Cass County Electric Cooperative. At full operation, the site is expected to employ over 200 full-time staff, alongside long-term contractors, the company added.
Applied Digital currently operates a 106 MW facility in Jamestown, North Dakota, known as JMS01, and is also planning a 200 MW facility in Iowa.
In June, Applied Digital has announced a new infrastructure partnership with Swiss electrification and automation company ABB with the main aim of supporting the growing demands of AI.
ABB noted that the new collaboration centers around Applied’s 400 MW greenfield campus in North Dakota, where both companies expect to develop energy-efficient power systems.
At the heart of the partnership is ABB’s HiPerGuard medium voltage static uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system. Unlike traditional low-voltage UPS systems, this medium-voltage approach allows data centers to scale in larger 25 MW blocks, ABB said. The design reduces cabling, improves reliability and enhances energy efficiency — key benefits as AI workloads increase power demands across the industry, the Swiss company added.
