# Rosebud County, Montana: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy Home to Colstrip and Forsyth The data center boom is not abstract in Rosebud County: it is on the ground here. The SAVRN Data Center Map lists 1 data center in Rosebud County, 5% of Montana's total. Rosebud County is home to Colstrip and Forsyth. 716 MW has retired here since 2019, including Colstrip (coal, 716 MW, 2020). Its power plants have 2,262 MW of capacity, 75% of it coal, the largest fleet in Montana. 568 MW of that came online in 2019 or later, mostly wind. 1 data centers on the SAVRN Data Center Map, 5% of Montana's 716 MW of generating capacity retired since 2019 2,262 MW of operating power plants, mostly coal ## Cities and towns in Rosebud County Rosebud County is home to Colstrip and Forsyth. Colstrip2,091 residents Forsyth1,652 residents Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Ashland, Birney, Lame Deer, Rosebud. 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 Rosebud County | Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Montana | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population (2020 → 2025) | 8,309 | 8,253 | ▼ 0.7% | 28th of 56 by size | | Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 3,791 | 3,616 | ▼ 4.6% | 44th of 56 by growth | | Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $52,376 | $66,874 | ▲ 27.7% | — | | Electric utility jobs (2019 → 2025) | 360 | 320 | ▼ 11.1% | — | | Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 4.9% | 4.3% | ▼ 0.6pts | — | | Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 568 MW | | — | | Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 716 MW | | — | Employers here counted 3,616 jobs in 2025, down 4.6% from 2019. Unemployment was 4.3% in August 2026, against 4.9% in 2019. NorthWestern Energy LLC - (MT) is the largest utility serving Rosebud County, one of 6 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 14.23¢/kWh in 2024, above the 10.95¢ median for Montana utilities. 8,253 people live here, down 0.7% since 2020. ## Who powers Rosebud County ### Utilities with service territory in Rosebud 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% | | Montana-Dakota Utilities Co | Investor Owned | Bundled | 19,616 | 12.89¢ | 37% | | McCone Electric Coop Inc | — | — | — | — | — | | Mid-Yellowstone Elec Coop, Inc | — | — | — | — | — | | Tongue River Electric Coop Inc | — | — | — | — | — | | WAPA-- Western Area Power Administration | Federal | Bundled | — | — | 79% | 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 | |---|---|---| | Coal | 1,694 MW | 75% | | Wind | 568 MW | 25% | | Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since | |---|---|---|---|---| | Colstrip | Talen Montana LLC | Coal | 1,647 MW | 1984 | | Clearwater Wind I | Clearwater Energy Resources LLC | Wind | 366 MW | 2022 | | Clearwater Wind II | Clearwater Wind II, LLC | Wind | 103 MW | 2023 | | Clearwater Wind III | Clearwater Wind III, LLC | Wind | 100 MW | 2024 | | Colstrip Energy LP | Colstrip Energy LP | Coal | 46 MW | 1990 | ### Retired since 2019 | Plant | Technology | MW | Year | |---|---|---|---| | Colstrip | Coal | 716 MW | 2020 | ## The Rosebud County labor market | Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. | |---|---|---|---| | All industries | 3,616 | $66,874 | 1.00 | | Electric utilities | 320 | $145,736 | 32.69 | 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 Rosebud County 1 data center in Rosebud County is on the SAVRN Data Center Map. ## Rosebud County and its neighbors Of the 8 counties that border Rosebud County, Yellowstone 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 | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Rosebud County | 8,253 | ▼ 4.6% | 2,262 MW | — | 1 | — | | Big Horn County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/big-horn-county) | 12,752 | ▼ 7.6% | 397 MW | — | — | — | | Custer County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/custer-county) | 12,034 | ▲ 1.0% | 231 MW | — | 1 | — | | Garfield County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/garfield-county) | 1,148 | ▲ 3.9% | — | — | — | — | | Musselshell County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/musselshell-county) | 5,582 | ▲ 4.0% | — | — | — | — | | Petroleum County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/petroleum-county) | 548 | ▲ 18.2% | — | — | — | — | | Powder River County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/powder-river-county) | 1,781 | ▲ 24.8% | — | — | — | — | | Treasure County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/treasure-county) | 728 | ▲ 4.6% | — | — | — | — | | Yellowstone County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/yellowstone-county) | 172,692 | ▲ 6.7% | 360 MW | 50 MW | 7 | 1 | ## More of Montana [All Montana countiesThe state power page and county mapOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana)[Yellowstone County172,692 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/yellowstone-county)[Big Horn County12,752 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/big-horn-county)[Custer County12,034 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/custer-county)[Musselshell County5,582 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/musselshell-county)[Powder River County1,781 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/powder-river-county) ## Rosebud County, answered from the record ### Who provides electricity in Rosebud County, Montana? 6 utilities have service territory in Rosebud County in the EIA-861 2024 report: NorthWestern Energy LLC - (MT), Montana-Dakota Utilities Co, McCone Electric Coop Inc, Mid-Yellowstone Elec Coop, Inc. The largest, NorthWestern Energy LLC - (MT), charged residential customers 14.23¢/kWh on average in 2024. ### What power plants are in Rosebud County? 5 operating plants with 2,262 MW of capacity. The largest is Colstrip (1,647 MW, coal). ### Are there data centers in Rosebud County? Yes. The SAVRN Data Center Map lists 1 data center in Rosebud County. ### Is Rosebud County adding jobs? Employers counted 3,616 jobs in 2025 against 3,791 in 2019 (-4.6%, BLS QCEW). ### Does Rosebud County have a data center moratorium? No county-level measure is on record for Rosebud County. Montana has 5 local measures statewide, listed on the state page. --- Canonical: https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/montana/rosebud-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/).