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Polaris Forge 1 Data Center | $300B Hyperscale AI Infrastructure Hub in Ellendale
Status: Active Construction / Phase 3 Funding Secured (May 2026) | Location: Polaris Forge 1 Campus, Ellendale, ND
Project Overview
On May 4, 2026, Applied Digital secured a $300 million bridge financing facility led by Goldman Sachs to complete construction of its third AI-focused data center at the Polaris Forge 1 campus in Ellendale, North Dakota. This facility has been purpose-built to support next-generation workloads, including artificial intelligence, high-performance cloud networking, and blockchain infrastructure, reflecting the rapid evolution of compute-intensive technologies. A key technical advantage of the Ellendale site is its location in a naturally cold climate, which enables highly efficient cooling systems and significantly reduces energy consumption compared to traditional data center environments. This allows the facility to sustain ultra-high rack densities necessary for advanced GPU clusters, such as NVIDIA’s H200 and B200 architectures, which demand substantial thermal and power management capabilities. The project exemplifies the emerging “Bridge-to-Build” financing model that has gained traction in 2026, where developers secure short-term, asset-backed loans to accelerate construction timelines while negotiating long-term hyperscale leasing agreements in parallel. This approach helps operators remain agile in a fast-moving AI infrastructure market, ensuring that capacity comes online quickly to meet surging demand without waiting for finalized tenant commitments.
Quick Facts Selected Details
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Project Name | Polaris Forge 1 Data Center | $300B Hyperscale AI Infrastructure Hub in Ellendale |
| Location | Polaris Forge 1 Campus, Ellendale, ND |
| Status | Active Construction / Phase 3 Funding Secured (May 2026) |
| Project Type | Purpose-Built AI & High-Performance Computing (HPC) |
| Commissioning | 🔒 Subscriber Intelligence |
| Total IT Load | 🔒 Subscriber Intelligence |
| Total Capacity | 🔒 Subscriber Intelligence |
| Tier Level | 🔒 Subscriber Intelligence |
City Profile
| Header | Details |
|---|---|
| City Name | Ellendale |
| Population | ~1,150 (2020 Census: 1,096; estimated slight growth since) |
| Urban Agglomeration | Not officially defined; part of a very small rural region (Dickey County total ~4,800) |
| Economic Profile | 🔒 Detailed city intelligence available to subscribers |
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Companies Involved
Developer, operator, infrastructure partners, contractors and engineering.
Technical Specifications
Power capacity, redundancy, cooling, connectivity, PUE and energy mix.
Milestones
Announcement, construction start, go-live and full buildout.
Investment Details
Total project investment and funding intelligence.