How a company quietly acquired 5,100 acres for a data center in Eastern Montana

Quantica Infrastructure, a company formed by Houston-based private equity firm EnCap Investments, plans to develop the 'Big Sky Campus' data center on 5,100 acres south of Broadview, Montana. The land, quietly acquired in 2024 by Montana Property LLC (a Quantica subsidiary), was initially intended for significant renewable energy projects. The site's development history began over a decade ago with Chicago-based Invernergy, which planned a wind energy project. This was later purchased by Broad Reach Power, founded by EnCap Investments, for the 'Buffalo Trail Wind and Solar' project. Local legislator Daniel Zolkinov, who chaired the House's energy committee before his wife Katie took over, was a developer for Broad Reach. Katie Zolkinov later sponsored a bill regarding wind farm setbacks. Despite several plans, these renewable projects largely failed to materialize, and Broad Reach was eventually acquired by French utility ENGIE in 2023. Following these unfulfilled projects, John Chesser, formerly CFO of Talen Energy and known for developing a data center acquired by Amazon, approached EnCap about the dormant assets. In 2025, EnCap announced the creation of Quantica Infrastructure, with Chesser as CEO, specifically to build data centers leveraging renewable energy. Days later, the Big Sky Campus project was unveiled. Crucially, Quantica Infrastructure has signed a letter of agreement with NorthWestern Energy to provide up to 1,000 megawatts of electricity. This agreement follows NorthWestern Energy's protracted legal battle with Broadview Solar, another company founded by EnCap, over power contracts. Coincidentally, NorthWestern Energy announced a $25-30 million transmission line project from Shorey Road to Broadview substation, expected to be completed by 2028, aligning with the data center's anticipated power-on date.