A massive data center could be headed to the town of Bow, New Hampshire, according to Federal Energy Regulatory Commission filings and a social media post from the state's consumer advocate. The public filings describe an agreement for a preliminary, exploratory study on the "viability" of connecting a 350-megawatt project to the grid. The study, according to the documents, was to be conducted by Eversource Energy, which owns the region's electric transmission system, at the request of Granite Shore Power, LLC, owner of Merrimack Station, a former coal-fired power plant in Bow.
New Hampshire Consumer Advocate Donald Kreis described the possible large-load facility as a data center in a tweet on Monday afternoon, detailing a meeting among staff from his office, New Hampshire Department of Energy personnel, and Eversource Energy employees. During the meeting, an Eversource executive mentioned that a developer was considering a data center project of "up to 200 MW" for Bow, Kreis wrote in the post. The study represents an early-stage step in what could be a lengthy permitting process, and it comes amid growing political scrutiny over data center development in the state.
The proposed facility would fall into the "hyperscale" category, which typically encompasses data centers drawing more than 100 megawatts of power, according to technology company IBM. One hundred megawatts is enough to power approximately 80,000 homes, based on a 2026 report from the Electric Power Research Institute. The size of the project, whether 200 MW or 350 MW, underscores the significant energy demands that such facilities place on local grids and surrounding communities.
New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte has spoken out against data centers, saying she supports a moratorium on their construction in the state. "I will always advocate for our towns to decide what's best for them, but with too many unknowns surrounding these facilities, I think it is best for us to institute a moratorium for the time being," she said in a statement to the Bulletin on Tuesday. In response to a question about the Bow proposal, Ayotte also cited concerns about impacts on electricity rates and other potential "unforeseen" harms from data centers.
The site of the proposed center has not been publicly identified. Kreis did not name the location in his post, and officials from Eversource and Bow declined to identify it. Granite Shore Power, which requested the study, did not respond to a request for comment. However, Granite Shore Power's physical address in Bow is the site of Merrimack Station, which was the last coal power plant operating in New England until its closure in late 2025. At the time, Granite Shore Power executives said they would repurpose the approximately 400-acre parcel to host solar power and batteries.
Bow Select Board Chairman Kip McDaniel, who also sits on the town's Planning Board, declined to comment on any specific data center discussions but said Bow had long been positioning itself to welcome developers. "Bow has spent the last 15 years trying to court appropriate development, and I think we've become a town that people want to work with," McDaniel said. "I'd also say that people who know about data centers know that they can be valued very highly, and in a town where we are obviously in a property tax-based state, that can be hugely beneficial." He added that any proposal would go through a robust planning process with opportunities for public comment.
The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence has driven a surge of data center development across the U.S., along with bipartisan concern about the centers' large energy use, the environmental impact of the power plants used to run them, and effects on electricity rates. New Hampshire has thus far remained largely on the sidelines of this boom. One exception was a proposal in Nottingham earlier this year, which drew local backlash and was ultimately rescinded by the developer, a New Hampshire businessman.
Still, it is not a given that New England will continue to see relatively few data centers, according to ISO-NE, which operates the regional power grid. "New England has not experienced data center development on the same scale as other parts of the country, but this is an area that can change, and the ISO believes the region needs to be prepared in the event development accelerates," said Mary Cate Colapietro, senior communications specialist at ISO-NE, in an email to the Bulletin. The ISO creates load forecasts using information shared by transmission owners to anticipate future load growth; a recent version notes a possible data center for the northeast Massachusetts and Boston area but does not identify any projects in New Hampshire.
Eversource spokesperson William Hinkle said the utility was engaged in the study because it is required to provide information about its transmission system to potential developers, regardless of the project's nature. "Eversource only delivers power and does not develop data centers," he wrote. "We are obligated to respond to all proposals from developers." He added that the company is "concerned" about the possible effects of large load developments on the grid.
Granite Shore Power's viability assessment agreement with Eversource was filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in April. The filings do not contain information about how the facility would be powered. If the project proceeds, the review process will involve additional grid and power studies, followed by permitting steps at the local, state, and federal levels.