Black Hills Corp /sd/ (BKH) · Oct 6, 2026 · Material agreement
$1.8B Google agreement — ~$150M projected 2030 net income; ~$2.4B cumulative unlevered free cash flow
Black Hills’ new Google data-center agreement converts a previously prospective project into contracted infrastructure growth, with $150 million of projected 2030 net income.
Black Hills is turning Wyoming’s large-load strategy into a major contracted buildout: it already had a data-center pipeline above 3 GW, with roughly 600 MW in its five-year plan by 2030, while the 1.8 GW Cheyenne opportunity had been publicly progressing but remained prospective. The key change is that the opportunity is now definitive. Black Hills signed agreements with Google running through 2048, covering up to 590 MW of grid-connected service plus management of about 2.1 GW of third-party resources.
| Filing metric | What it says |
|---|---|
| Company-owned generation investment, 2027–2029 | $1.8 billion (Press release — investment plan) |
| New company-owned generation | 564 MW (Press release — generation investment) |
| Grid-connected service | Up to 590 MW (Press release — service model) |
| Projected net income in 2030 | Approximately $150 million (Press release — financial benefits) |
| Unlevered free cash flow through 2048 | Approximately $2.4 billion, net of $1.8 billion of capital expenditures (Press release — financial benefits) |
| Google refundable equipment advances | $399 million; expected reimbursement by June 30, 2027 (Financing section) |
This is materially larger than the previously embedded growth plan. The prior plan emphasized serving about 600 MW by 2030 with minimal capital investment; this agreement adds a $1.8 billion generation build and a new earnings stream, rather than merely confirming existing customer demand. The filing projects approximately $150 million of net income in 2030. There is no clean published consensus for this one-off agreement, so the positive read is versus the company’s prior operating plan and the market’s standing assumption that the project was still only an opportunity.
The economics are structured to make the capital burden look more utility-like than speculative. Black Hills expects to earn a return during construction, receive microgrid-management fees as the load ramps, and generate approximately $2.4 billion of unlevered free cash flow through 2048 after the planned generation investment. Google’s $399 million refundable equipment advances also reduce near-term procurement exposure, although Black Hills expects to repay them by June 30, 2027.
Customer protection is an important part of the investment case, but execution remains ahead. The agreements provide for cost pass-throughs, stranded-asset protection, early-termination safeguards and credit support; the filing also says costs are intended not to shift to existing retail customers. 〔0〕 Black Hills still has to build the generation, finalize financing, complete additional regulatory work and advance transmission expansions, so the projected earnings are contract-backed but not immediate or entirely delivered yet.
Bottom line: This moves the Google project from a known pipeline possibility to a contracted, high-value growth platform. It is a significant upgrade to Black Hills’ long-term earnings and cash-flow story, with the main remaining questions being construction, financing and regulatory execution rather than customer demand.
Generation construction begins in 2027; service ramps late 2027
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