# Beaverhead County, Montana: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy Home to Dillon Beaverhead County is a generation frontier for Montana. Beaverhead County is home to Dillon. 400 MW of new generation is planned here across 2 units, led by ARFL bn, LLC (solar), the 2nd largest pipeline among Montana's counties. Unemployment was 2.1% in August 2026, against 3.2% in 2019. 80 MW of that came online in 2019 or later, mostly solar. Its power plants have 80 MW of capacity, 100% of it solar. 400 MW of new generation planned here, solar leading 80 MW of operating power plants, mostly solar +3.2% total jobs since 2019, now 4,054 ## Cities and towns in Beaverhead County Beaverhead County is home to Dillon. Dillon4,271 residents Lima221 residents Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Argenta, Dell, Dewey, Glen, Grant, Jackson, Lakeview, Maverick Mountain, Wisdom, Wise River. Residents are 2025 Census estimates for the part of each city, town or township inside this county. Census publishes no annual estimate for unincorporated communities. ## What changed in Beaverhead County | Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Montana | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population (2020 → 2025) | 9,375 | 10,043 | ▲ 7.1% | 22nd of 56 by size | | Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 3,929 | 4,054 | ▲ 3.2% | 29th of 56 by growth | | Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $37,204 | $51,033 | ▲ 37.2% | — | | Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 3.2% | 2.1% | ▼ 1.1pts | — | | Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 80 MW | | — | | Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 0 MW | | — | | Planned generation (Aug 2026) | — | 400 MW | 500% of today's fleet | 2nd of 4 by size | Employers here counted 4,054 jobs in 2025, up 3.2% from 2019. NorthWestern Energy LLC - (MT) is the largest utility serving Beaverhead County, one of 2 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 14.23¢/kWh in 2024, above the 10.95¢ median for Montana utilities. 10,043 people live here, up 7.1% since 2020. ## Who powers Beaverhead County ### Utilities with service territory in Beaverhead County | Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | NorthWestern Energy LLC - (MT) | Investor Owned | Bundled | 328,127 | 14.23¢ | 49% | | Vigilante Electric Coop, Inc | — | — | — | — | — | Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers. ### Operating power plants | Technology | Capacity | Share | |---|---|---| | Solar | 80 MW | 100% | | Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since | |---|---|---|---|---| | Apex Solar | Apex Solar LLC | Solar | 80 MW | 2023 | ### Planned generation | Plant | Technology | MW | Status | Year | Owner | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | Anthelope Hills Solar Generation BESS | Solar Photovoltaic | 200 MW | Approvals pending | 2027 | ARFL bn, LLC | | Anthelope Hills Solar Generation BESS | Batteries | 200 MW | Approvals pending | 2027 | ARFL bn, LLC | ## The Beaverhead County labor market | Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. | |---|---|---|---| | All industries | 4,054 | $51,033 | 1.00 | Concentration is the BLS location quotient: 1.0 means the industry holds the same share of local jobs as it does nationally. Industry rows count private employers; cells BLS suppresses are left out. ## Data centers and local rules in Beaverhead County No data center, local measure or delayed project is on record in Beaverhead County. Montana has 5 local measures on record statewide, and 1 neighboring county has one: [Silver Bow County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/silver-bow-county). ## Beaverhead County and its neighbors Of the 7 counties that border Beaverhead County, Deer Lodge County carries the most build-out activity: data centers, planned generation and operating plants combined. [[[[[[[ | County | Population | Jobs since 2019 | Operating MW | Planned MW | Data centers | Local measures | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Beaverhead County | 10,043 | ▲ 3.2% | 80 MW | 400 MW | — | — | | Clark County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/idaho/clark-county) ID | 783 | ▼ 10.0% | 3 MW | — | — | — | | Deer Lodge County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/deer-lodge-county) | 9,709 | ▲ 7.6% | 203 MW | — | — | — | | Fremont County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/idaho/fremont-county) ID | 14,208 | ▲ 21.2% | 24 MW | — | — | — | | Lemhi County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/idaho/lemhi-county) ID | 8,474 | ▲ 8.7% | 5 MW | — | — | — | | Madison County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/madison-county) | 10,026 | ▼ 32.7% | 16 MW | — | — | — | | Ravalli County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/ravalli-county) | 48,582 | ▲ 13.5% | — | — | — | — | | Silver Bow County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/silver-bow-county) | 36,118 | ▲ 5.0% | 55 MW | — | — | 1 | ## More of Montana [All Montana countiesThe state power page and county mapOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana)[Ravalli County48,582 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/ravalli-county)[Silver Bow County36,118 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/silver-bow-county)[Madison County10,026 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/madison-county)[Deer Lodge County9,709 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/deer-lodge-county) ## Beaverhead County, answered from the record ### Who provides electricity in Beaverhead County, Montana? 2 utilities have service territory in Beaverhead County in the EIA-861 2024 report: NorthWestern Energy LLC - (MT), Vigilante Electric Coop, Inc. The largest, NorthWestern Energy LLC - (MT), charged residential customers 14.23¢/kWh on average in 2024. ### What power plants are in Beaverhead County? 1 operating plant with 80 MW of capacity. The largest is Apex Solar (80 MW, solar). ### How much new power is planned in Beaverhead County? 400 MW across 2 units in the August 2026 EIA-860M inventory, 0 MW of it under construction or built. The largest owner is ARFL bn, LLC. ### Are there data centers in Beaverhead County? The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Beaverhead County. ### Is Beaverhead County adding jobs? Employers counted 4,054 jobs in 2025 against 3,929 in 2019 (+3.2%, BLS QCEW). ### Does Beaverhead County have a data center moratorium? No county-level measure is on record for Beaverhead County. Montana has 5 local measures statewide, listed on the state page. --- Canonical: https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/beaverhead-county Updated: 2026-10-08. Refreshed weekly by SAVRN from EIA, BLS, BEA, Census and the SAVRN trackers. License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).