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Data center project · Franklin County, Maine

Androscoggin Mill data center, Jay

Withdrawn · A $550 million plan to put about 1 million square feet of data center space in the paper mill that closed in 2023, which became the reason the governor gave for vetoing the statewide moratorium and then lost its operator weeks later. Also known as: Sentinel Maine.

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Androscoggin CountyAroostook CountyCumberland CountyFranklin CountyHancock CountyKennebec CountyKnox CountyLincoln CountyOxford CountyPenobscot CountyPiscataquis CountySagadahoc CountySomerset CountyWaldo CountyWashington CountyYork CountyAndroscoggin Mill data center, Jay · Withdrawn
Status
Withdrawn · as of June 12, 2026
Location
Former Androscoggin Mill, Riley Road, Jay · Franklin County
Status note
The operator, Sentinel Data Centers, told the mill owner it would not go ahead; the owner calls the project on hold and is talking with other parties.
Power
Not reported
No data center load figure was published. The developer said the site would draw at most 25 MW from Central Maine Power when on-site solar (up to 150 MW of generation, not load) was not producing, and that CMP had told the owner its existing 82 MW supply in Jay could carry that.
Floor area
1,000,000 sq ft
Investment
$550 million (developer and governor)
Developer and team
JGT2 Redevelopment LLC (site owner); Sentinel Data Centers (planned operator)
Utility
Central Maine Power; on-site hydro use approved by the PUC, per the developer
Water
Developer said a closed-loop system would draw about 300,000 gallons a day from the Androscoggin River to make up for evaporation, against 35 to 40 million a day for the old mill.
Evidence
Primary public records
Size class
Under 50 MW (outside main scope; kept for completeness)
Map position approximate, from the reported address or area. Updated Oct. 17, 2026.

Updates, newest first

  1. June 12, 2026 Jay's town manager said Sentinel had told JGT2 it would not move forward for now and the project was on hold; the energy department's August pre-read noted Data Center Map listed it as canceled that day. (Maine Public, June 12, 2026; Maine Department of Energy Resources, Aug. 13, 2026)
  2. April 24, 2026 Gov. Mills vetoed LD 307, writing that she would have signed it with an exemption for the Jay project, which she said was under contract and had several permits. (Office of Gov. Janet T. Mills, April 24, 2026; Office of Gov. Janet T. Mills, April 24, 2026)
  3. March 23, 2026 The Jay Select Board voted 4-0, with one abstention, to send a letter backing the project and asking lawmakers to exempt it from LD 307. (The Maine Monitor (Monitor Local), March 25, 2026)
  4. March 16, 2026 The BDN reported the owner's agreement with Sentinel Data Centers for 1 million square feet on two floors, with work due to start in July, and the developer's warning that LD 307 would kill the project. (The Maine Monitor (from the Bangor Daily News), March 16, 2026)

Conflicts and open questions

  • Power use is unsettled: the developer's 25 MW grid-draw figure is not a facility load, and the 150 MW solar figure is generation.
  • The Select Board vote date is inferred from a Monday meeting reported March 25; the minutes were not opened.

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