Across the United States, communities are pushing back against data centers.

Residents have questions: Will a data center drive up electricity prices? Strain the local grid? Consume scarce resources?

In Pine Island, Minnesota, those questions didn’t derail a project. They helped design a better one.

The newly announced Google data center, developed in partnership with Xcel Energy, shows how major infrastructure investments can move forward while protecting the interests of the communities that host them.

Related: Google just bought your Minnesota vacationland for a data center

Minnesota’s recent legislation governing large new electricity users — designed to ensure transparency and protect ratepayers — helped establish the framework for that outcome.

The result is more than a major economic investment in southeastern Minnesota. It is a blueprint for how data centers can be built responsibly.

Clean power built for new demand

Whenever a large industrial facility is proposed, residents understandably worry about the impact on the electric grid and their monthly utility bills.

Minnesota’s approach addresses those concerns directly.

Under the agreement between Google and Xcel, the Pine Island project will bring 1,900 megawatts of new clean energy onto the grid — generation built specifically to serve the facility rather than drawing from the power that existing customers depend on.

That new supply includes:

● 1,400 megawatts of wind generation

● 200 megawatts of solar power

● 300 megawatts of long-duration energy storage

These investments will be funded through a Clean Energy Accelerator Charge that Google will pay in full, ensuring the project finances the clean energy needed to power it.

Equally important, Google will also cover 100% of the costs for new grid infrastructure required to serve the facility. That protects Minnesota ratepayers while allowing the grid to expand in a way that strengthens reliability and supports future economic growth.

When large electricity users pay their full share, the system works the way it should: Development moves forward without shifting costs onto local communities.

A breakthrough in energy storage

One of the most significant elements of the Pine Island agreement is its investment in long-duration energy storage.

The project includes a major installation of iron-air batteries from Form Energy, a company with deep Minnesota ties. The technology can store electricity for multiple days — capturing excess renewable power when it is abundant and releasing it when demand rises.

It will be the largest battery project by energy capacity ever announced anywhere in the world.

And unlike some other battery systems, Form Energy batteries are non-toxic and non-combustible, using everyday ingredients like iron and air.

As Minnesota and the nation add more renewable energy, technologies like this will be essential to maintaining reliability. Long-duration storage ensures clean power is available not just when the wind blows or the sun shines, but whenever homes and businesses need it.

Protecting Minnesota’s water resources

Water use has become one of the most contentious issues surrounding data center development nationwide.

The Pine Island project addresses that concern directly.

In Minnesota, Google plans to use advanced air-cooling technology, which essentially eliminates the need for water-intensive cooling systems. That design protects local water resources while demonstrating how modern data centers can adapt to the priorities of the communities where they operate.

A data center model for the country

Artificial intelligence and cloud computing will continue to drive demand for new data centers. States across the country are now grappling with how to accommodate that growth without compromising reliability, affordability or natural resources.

Minnesota has offered a clear answer: set strong rules, require transparency and ensure large energy users pay the full cost of the infrastructure and the power they need.

Related: Minnesota residents opposed to data centers look to legislators for moratoriums and transparency

The Pine Island project proves that when those principles guide development, innovation and community interests do not have to collide.

They can move forward together.

And in Pine Island, Minnesota has shown the rest of the country how building the infrastructure of the AI era can be done.

Jennifer Granholm, a former two-term governor of Michigan, served as U.S. secretary of energy in the Biden administration from 2021 to 2025.

Related