Custer County, Oklahoma: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy
Home to Weatherford, Clinton and Thomas
Custer County is a power-producing county: the plants here serve load well beyond its borders. Custer County is home to Weatherford, Clinton, Thomas and Arapaho. 999 MW of that came online in 2019 or later, mostly wind. Next door, Dewey County has 251 MW of planned generation. Its power plants have 1,146 MW of capacity, 100% of it wind. Construction employs 632, up 3.8% since 2019.
Cities and towns in Custer County
Custer County is home to Weatherford, Clinton, Thomas and Arapaho.
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 Custer County
1st = the most. Ranks cover counties with a value on record.
| Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Oklahoma |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (2020 → 2025) | 28,448 | 28,175 | ▼ 1.0% | 33rd of 77 by size |
| Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 13,045 | 12,820 | ▼ 1.7% | 44th of 77 by growth |
| Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $44,367 | $51,151 | ▲ 15.3% | — |
| Construction jobs (2019 → 2025) | 609 | 632 | ▲ 3.8% | 34th of 48 by growth |
| Electrical contractor jobs (2019 → 2025) | 45 | 41 | ▼ 8.9% | — |
| Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 2.5% | 3.2% | ▲ 0.7pts | — |
| Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 999 MW | — | |
| Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 0 MW | — |
Unemployment was 3.2% in August 2026, against 2.5% in 2019. Employers here counted 12,820 jobs in 2025, down 1.7% from 2019. Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co is the largest utility serving Custer County, one of 5 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 11.78¢/kWh in 2024, below the 12.53¢ median for Oklahoma utilities. Electrical contractors employ 41, down 8.9% since 2019 against up 8.3% statewide, at an average $44,845 a year. 28,175 people live here, down 1.0% since 2020.
Who powers Custer County
Net change in operating capacity since 2019: +999 MW. Colors follow the fuel legend above.
Utilities with service territory in Custer County
| Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co | Investor Owned | Bundled | 710,123 | 11.78¢ | 44% |
| Public Service Co of Oklahoma | Investor Owned | Bundled | 501,093 | 12.73¢ | 36% |
| CKenergy Electric Cooperative | Cooperative | Bundled | 22,555 | 12.82¢ | 41% |
| Cimarron Electric Coop | Cooperative | Bundled | 15,258 | 11.87¢ | 52% |
| Northfork 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 2
| Technology | Capacity | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Wind | 1,146 MW | 100% |
| Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traverse Wind Project, LLC | Southwestern Electric Power Co | Wind | 999 MW | 2022 |
| Weatherford Wind Energy Center | FPL Energy Weatherford, LLC | Wind | 147 MW | 2005 |
The Custer County labor market
| Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All industries | 12,820 | $51,151 | 1.00 |
| Construction | 632 | $61,396 | 0.93 |
| Electrical contractors | 41 | $44,845 | 0.44 |
| Power and communication line construction | 14 | $124,478 | 0.68 |
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 Custer County
No data center, local measure or delayed project is on record in Custer County. Oklahoma has 15 local measures on record statewide.
Custer County and its neighbors
Of the 6 counties that border Custer County, Dewey 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Custer County | 28,175 | ▼ 1.7% | 1,146 MW | — | — | — |
| Beckham County | 22,159 | ▲ 0.8% | — | — | — | — |
| Blaine County | 8,515 | ▼ 8.8% | — | — | — | — |
| Caddo County | 26,130 | ▼ 1.0% | 2,113 MW | — | — | — |
| Dewey County | 4,207 | ▲ 19.0% | 881 MW | 251 MW | — | — |
| Roger Mills County | 3,259 | ▼ 8.0% | 453 MW | — | — | — |
| Washita County | 10,884 | ▼ 4.9% | 376 MW | — | — | — |
More of Oklahoma
Custer County, answered from the record
Who provides electricity in Custer County, Oklahoma?
5 utilities have service territory in Custer County in the EIA-861 2024 report: Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co, Public Service Co of Oklahoma, CKenergy Electric Cooperative, Cimarron Electric Coop. The largest, Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co, charged residential customers 11.78¢/kWh on average in 2024.
What county is Weatherford, OK in?
Weatherford is in Custer County, Oklahoma. About 12,005 people live there (2025 Census estimate).
What power plants are in Custer County?
2 operating plants with 1,146 MW of capacity. The largest is Traverse Wind Project, LLC (999 MW, wind).
Are there data centers in Custer County?
The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Custer County. The nearest activity on record is next door in Dewey County.
Is Custer County adding jobs?
Employers counted 12,820 jobs in 2025 against 13,045 in 2019 (-1.7%, BLS QCEW). Construction went from 609 to 632.
Does Custer County have a data center moratorium?
No county-level measure is on record for Custer County. Oklahoma has 15 local measures statewide, listed on the state page.