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Proposed

Sanford Woods Industrial and Technical Campus

Also called: Sanford data center campus

Developers want to build a large campus in south Sanford with a 100 to 300 MW data center, its own gas (later hydrogen) power plant, a greenhouse and cold storage. The city manager estimated about $2.16 billion in investment. No applications have been filed.

✔ ConfirmedSourceLast checked: Oct 2026

Where things stand: Very early. Developers say they are not ready to file applications.

🕒 Latest update (April 22, 2026): Company's lawyer said it was not ready to file applications.

What we know

  • 📍 WhereAbout 1,060 acres in south Sanford along the Mousam River, Sanford, York County
  • 🏢 CompanymultiFUELS
  • 🌳 Size1,060 acres
  • ⚡ Power it needs300 megawatts (about as much as 240,000 homes)
  • 🔌 Where the power comes fromOwn power plant on site (300 MW fuel cells), first on natural gas, later hydrogen. Developers say it would not use the regional grid.
  • 💧 Water300,000 gallons a day
  • 💵 Cost$2.2 billion

❓ Still unanswered

Nobody has answered these in public yet. Can you help find out?

  • Which company is the developer? Reports name multiFUELS and New England Energy. 🙋 I'll find out
  • Where will the water come from, and will the Sanford Water District supply up to 300,000 gallons a day? 🙋 I'll find out
  • When will the developers file applications with the city? 🙋 I'll find out
  • Where exactly is the site? A parcel number, address or agenda link helps. 🙋 I'll find out

🔎 What we checked

  • Oct 8, 2026: We checked news reports and the state parcel map: reports only say the land is about 1,060 wooded acres in south Sanford along the Mousam River, downstream of Estes Lake, owned by New England Energy. No road, address or parcel number is public, so the pin stays on the city.

What happened so far

  • Feb 19, 2026
    Developers presented the plan to the Legislature's energy committee.
  • April 22, 2026
    Company's lawyer said it was not ready to file applications.

Local votes and rules

⏸️ Pause on new data centers

Sanford City Council unanimously voted for a new 180-day data center pause that replaces the first one. It now ends Jan. 31, 2027. A city task force is reviewing rules for big industrial projects.

Aug 4, 2026

⏸️ Pause on new data centers

Sanford City Council unanimously passed a 91-day emergency pause on large data center permits. It stopped work on the Sanford Woods campus plan near the Mousam River. A resident group had brought the draft wording to the council.

May 19, 2026
🛰️ See it from above

Drag the slider to compare the land before and now.

20182025
We only know the town, so this shows the town center, not the exact site. Photos: Sentinel-2 cloudless by EOX IT Services GmbH (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data), CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.

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Where this comes from

  1. Data center could pump $2 billion into city · Sanford Springvale News · Feb 27, 2026
  2. As Gov. Mills weighs data center ban, projects mixed on what the impact would be · Maine Morning Star · April 22, 2026
  3. Data center developer makes pitch to local groups · Sanford Springvale News · Oct 8, 2026
  4. Company eyes Sanford site for data center · Sanford Springvale News · Oct 8, 2026

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