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SD — Power Infrastructure Updated January 2026

South Dakota

Power generation, transmission, storage, and interconnection topics relevant to data center power supply in South Dakota.

MISO/SPP Natural Gas Wind Solar Storage Data Center PPAs Queue Bottlenecks Transmission Constraints

Overview

South Dakota sits at the crossroads of two regional grids — MISO in the east and SPP in the west — with wind and solar projects advancing across both territories. The state is adding hundreds of megawatts of renewable capacity alongside a new natural gas plant, while battery storage permitting rules were recently clarified. Interconnection queue delays in both MISO and SPP continue to stretch project timelines.

Generation Projects

Natural Gas

Western Minnesota Municipal Power Agency and Missouri River Energy Services filed for a permit to build the Toronto Power Plant in Scandinavia Township, Deuel County. The project is a 145 MW dual-fuel facility that includes a 4.9-mile 345-kV generator tie line to the Astoria substation and a short natural gas pipeline connection.[1]

Wind

Wind energy is expanding across South Dakota with three major projects advancing through the permitting pipeline.

  • South Deuel Wind Project (Deuel County): The South Dakota PUC approved a construction permit for this 260 MW project, which will include up to 68 turbines and a six-mile 345-kV generator tie line to the Astoria switchyard area. The project spans roughly 29,258 acres.[2]
  • Philip Wind Project (Haakon County): Philip Wind Partners filed an application for a project of up to 333 MW nameplate capacity (300 MW delivered at interconnection), with up to 87 turbines and a 7-mile 230-kV generator tie line. The project targets commercial operation in December 2027 and will connect to WAPA’s planned Philip North 230-kV switchyard.[3]

Solar

The Wild Springs Solar Project in Pennington County began operation in June 2024, adding 128 MW of capacity to western South Dakota’s grid. Basin Electric purchased 114 MW of the project’s output.[4]

Transmission and Grid

South Dakota is building new 345-kV backbone capacity in the eastern part of the state while upgrading 230-kV infrastructure in the west.

  • Big Stone South to Alexandria (BSSA) 345-kV line: The South Dakota PUC approved the facility permit for the South Dakota portion of this major transmission line in January 2025. Xcel Energy Transmission reports that construction began in 2025 on the Alexandria–Big Oaks segment, with the western segment connecting the Big Stone South substation in South Dakota to Alexandria, Minnesota.[5][6]
  • WAPA 230-kV upgrades (Haakon County): WAPA will build the Philip North 230-kV switchyard and two tie-in lines to connect the Philip Wind Project to the Oahe–New Underwood 230-kV line.[3]
  • Generator tie lines: The Toronto Power Plant includes a 4.9-mile 345-kV gen-tie to Astoria, and the South Deuel Wind Project includes a six-mile 345-kV gen-tie.[1][2]

Battery Storage

NextEra Energy Resources is seeking to build the Crowned Ridge Energy Storage project in Codington County — a 120 MW battery energy storage system (BESS) on roughly 15 acres within the Crowned Ridge wind project area. In September 2025, the South Dakota PUC ruled that the facility requires a state permit, clarifying jurisdiction for large storage projects in the state.[7]

Data Center Power Agreements

The Coyote Ridge Wind Farm (97 MW) sells 100% of its output to Google Energy LLC, according to the South Dakota PUC’s wind project list.[8] No other South Dakota-specific PPAs tied to named data center operators were identified in public filings reviewed.

Interconnection Queue

South Dakota’s position across two regional grids means interconnection bottlenecks affect projects in both territories.

  • MISO delays (eastern South Dakota): MISO’s December 2024 queue update notes that while tariff study timelines target one year, cycles are taking 3–4 years, and the queue backlog is delaying new resource additions across eastern South Dakota.[9]
  • SPP backlog milestone (western South Dakota): SPP announced in September 2025 that it cleared its generation interconnection backlog, completing 24 cluster studies that evaluated 1,652 projects and 340 GW of generation. SPP is transitioning to its Consolidated Planning Process to speed future interconnection studies.[10]

What to Watch

  • Toronto Power Plant permit decision — The Deuel County gas plant application will test how the state balances new dispatchable capacity with renewable growth.
  • Battery storage permitting framework — The Crowned Ridge ruling clarifies state jurisdiction for BESS projects; watch for how this affects future storage applications.
  • Queue reform impacts — SPP’s Consolidated Planning Process and MISO’s ongoing queue reform efforts will shape how quickly new generation can come online in both parts of the state.

Sources

[1] South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, “EL25-028 — Notice of Application (Toronto Power Plant),” August 7, 2025, https://puc.sd.gov/commission/dockets/electric/2025/EL25-028/EL25-028TorontoNoticeofApplication.pdf (accessed January 8, 2026).

[2] South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, “PUC approves construction permit with conditions for South Deuel Wind Project,” February 28, 2025, https://puc.sd.gov/News/2025/022825.aspx (accessed January 8, 2026).

[3] South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, “EL25-029 — Notice of Application (Philip Wind Project),” August 15, 2025, https://puc.sd.gov/commission/dockets/electric/2025/EL25-029/EL25-029NoticeofApplication.pdf (accessed January 8, 2026).

[4] South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, “South Dakota Solar Energy Projects,” updated June 2025, https://puc.sd.gov/energy/solar/project.aspx (accessed January 8, 2026).

[5] Missouri River Energy Services, “Facility permit approved for new transmission line,” January 29, 2025, https://www.mrenergy.com/news/facility-permit-approved-for-new-transmission-line (accessed January 8, 2026).

[6] Xcel Energy Transmission, “Big Stone South to Alexandria to Big Oaks,” project page, https://xcelenergytransmission.com/projects/big-stone-south-alexandria-big-oaks/ (accessed January 8, 2026).

[7] Matthew Biss, “Legal ambiguity means state permit required for NextEra 120MW BESS in South Dakota,” Energy-Storage.news, September 29, 2025, https://www.energy-storage.news/legal-ambiguity-in-south-dakota-regulator-finds-state-permit-required-for-nextera-120mw-bess/ (accessed January 8, 2026).

[8] South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, “South Dakota Wind Energy Projects,” updated June 2025, https://puc.sd.gov/energy/wind/project.aspx (accessed January 8, 2026).

[9] Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), “Generator Interconnection Queue Update,” System Planning Committee, December 10, 2024, https://cdn.misoenergy.org/20241210%20System%20Planning%20Committee%20of%20the%20BOD%20Item%2004%20Generator%20Interconnection%20Queue%20Update665714.pdf (accessed January 8, 2026).

[10] Southwest Power Pool, “Southwest Power Pool reaches milestone in acceleration of generation interconnection requests,” September 10, 2025, https://www.spp.org/news-list/southwest-power-pool-reaches-milestone-in-acceleration-of-generation-interconnection-requests/ (accessed January 8, 2026).