Avista pauses data center talks after community response

Avista Utilities announced Friday that negotiations concerning energy service to this potential data center are now paused. 

The news release shared by Avista officials stressed partnering with governmental agencies on creating a clear and coordinated planning process and as the company considers additional stakeholder feedback.

The decision follows recent community interest and concern related to Avista’s previously announced memorandum of understanding with the new 500-megawatt data center developer.

“We’ve heard the questions and concerns from our customers, community members and local leaders, and we take that feedback seriously,” said Avista President and CEO Heather Rosentrater.

She noted that responses from the community "demonstrated a need for a broader coordinated planning effort" and that Avista is just one link in that chain.

"We recognize that we need more time to align with our partners and communities in a way that is transparent, thoughtful and in the best long-term interest of our region," Rosentrater said.

As a regulated utility, Avista is required to review requests for service, including large proposals like this one. At the same time, the developer must secure all necessary permits for their project. 

Avista remains committed to collaborating with local leaders, regulators and community members. These conversations will help inform how large data center requests are considered moving forward and ensure alignment with broader regional priorities.  

For over 137 years, Avista has served large load energy customers that help support the economic health and vitality of the region.

What’s new now is the scale of the data center requests and level of public interest. 

Avista officials shared guiding principles they will use for potential large load customers going forward: 

Existing customers will not pay for costs of serving a new large customer. 

Safeguards will be in place to prevent shifting of expenses to current customers and there are required engineering studies and system upgrades that must be completed before any service begins.

Any final service agreement must be reviewed and approved by state regulators.

Growth must be responsible and Avista officials noted that any large project must deliver net benefits for customers.

Projects involving large data centers are complex and involve multiple stakeholders beyond Avista, including developers, regional infrastructure partners, regulators and local communities. 

The company will continue to provide more information as it becomes available.