WILLISTON, N.D. – North Dakota has always been known for its oil and agriculture, but the state has recently been working with private investors to bring in new industries to diversify the economy.
Data Centers are one of the latest industries interested in North Dakota, with one company making a big announcement this week.
The state’s commerce department has been travelling across the nation to recruit investors to check out North Dakota. After meeting officials with Bitzero during a cryptocurrency summit in April, the company announced that they would build their North American Headquarters here in North Dakota.
The Atlas Power Data Center was the first project of its kind in the state, but it won’t be the last. Bitzero plans to build 200 megawatts of data centers in North Dakota within the next three years.
“Data is the new oil. This state has plenty of energy, now it has an opportunity to convert some of it into and diversify into what every single sovereign wants,” said Kevin O’Leary, Strategic Investor for Bitzero and star of “Shark Tank.”
Officials with the company said building their headquarters in North Dakota was the logical choice due to their support for investors and interest in this new space. Governor Doug Burgum said by diversifying the economy, the state will become less reliant on the price of oil and other commodities.
“It takes our state off the dependance of being, as we have been for over a hundred years, dependent on revenues at the state level that are tied to commodities. When we diversify like this, we can level out our revenue sources. That creates support for all the things we do as a state,” said Burgum.
While data centers in the state have prioritized cryptocurrency mining, they can have other uses such as high-end computer processing for public and private companies.
Bitzero CEO Akbar Shamji said that a location has not been chosen yet, but that he is deciding between Bismarck and Fargo.
The company also announced that they would use power from MHA Nation, and in return, the heat generated from the data centers would be used for their greenhouse project.
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