Prometheus Hyperscale hasn’t missed a beat on its plans for a massive data center near Evanston, pressing ahead with county approvals and workforce training as a legal challenge from opponents fades into the rearview mirror.
Prometheus is preparing for an additional county meeting that will focus on the project’s power infrastructure. Simultaneously it will up workforce and training initiatives for both the Evanston-area data center and a second, similarly sized facility proposed for Natrona County.
Company president Trevor Neilson told Cowboy State Daily the Uinta County project remains on track, and that Natrona County officials have been looking to Uinta’s permit conditions as a model for “responsible” data center development.
Prometheus estimates it will be making a $16 billion investment in both Uinta and Natrona counties for its data centers, a $32 billion total. Neilson said it's among the largest private investments being made in Wyoming.
The developments are expected to boost tax revenues in each county by around 70%, Neilson said, money that can help those counties navigate recent property tax revenue cuts and fund roads, mental health and emergency services.
Failing To Make A Case
The company’s renewed momentum comes after a bid to derail the project through an administrative review collapsed. The petition, filed July 16 by Christy Katzl, Wilhelm Katzl and Marijke Rossi, accused Uinta County commissioners and developers of holding unadvertised meetings and failing to disclose potential familial conflicts of interest — allegations county officials have denied.
The petition also said the county should have conducted an environmental impact study of the data center’s proposed closed-loop water system before approving its conditional-use permits.
Judge James Kaste ruled petitioners failed to respond to a motion to dismiss the review in a timely fashion and didn’t sufficiently show how they’d be personally harmed by the data center. The decision, issued Aug. 17, ends the administrative review challenge and leaves the county’s conditional-use permits in place.
“I said at the time this was a really frivolous appeal, and obviously the court agreed with us,” Neilson said.
Katzl told Cowboy State Daily in a statement she is stepping back from the effort due to upcoming cancer surgery.
"I stand firmly behind the concerns we raised regarding the Prometheus Hyperscale data center, but it is now up to the citizens of Uinta County to take up the banner and drive this forward," Katzl said. "If community members choose to continue this effort and need my guidance, I am open to offering help where I can, but I can no longer carry this on my own."
Construction Date Nearing
Construction of Prometheus Hyperscale’s Evanston data center has not yet begun.
The company is still working through the official processes required by Uinta County, including a Wednesday meeting with the County Commission, one of the final steps before construction can begin.
“We’re feeling really good about it,” Neilson said. “And the community, I think, has really become a model for responsible data center development. In fact, other counties like Natrona are asking questions and looking for guidance from Uinta, which is ironic, because Natrona is actually a bigger county.”
Neilson said the company intends to suggest Natrona implement the same 30 or so conditions Uinta County placed on its permit. Some of those were proposed by Prometheus Hyperscale, which has said publicly it wants to hold itself to a higher standard than is typical for the industry.
“We are happy to meet those conditions,” Neilson said. “It’s just a way of making sure that everybody is aligned on how the project should unfold and ensuring that there are no surprises for anybody.”
Extra Community Engagement Needed
Neilson has noticed the pushback against data centers in other states, particularly in Texas.
“They have stopped all data centers that have a connection to the grid in Texas,” Neilson said. “They’ve created a moratorium. And people were shocked when that happened, but they were even more shocked when Gov. (Greg) Abbott, who is a staunch right-wing Republican, came out this morning and said data centers in Texas have, quote unquote, dug their own grave.”
Neilson said he believes the issue there reflects not taking community engagement seriously enough.
“We just have known from the beginning that you have to engage with communities in a really respectful, authentic way,” he said. “If you don’t, there’s going to be problems.”
Neilson has appreciated recent campaign messaging from candidates who talk about responsible development.
“That’s our position, too,” he said. “This has to be responsible … Wyoming is really well-suited for large infrastructure projects. And that’s really starting to pay off for us, because we’ve always believed that. This is a state that knows how to build things and wants to build things.”
Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.
