Maine’s first large-scale artificial intelligence data center could open within six months at the former Loring Air Force Base in Aroostook County.

Loring LiquidCool Data Center on Tuesday announced a partnership with Green 4 Maine LLC, a development firm that owns much of the old base in Limestone, to launch the AI center. Green 4 Maine purchased many of the buildings and land in 2023.

Massive data centers needed for generative artificial intelligence systems like ChatGPT typically require enormous amounts of electricity, putting new strain on power grids. While that’s driving up the cost of electricity in some parts of the country, regulators said this summer that Maine has yet to feel that pressure.

The data center will use technology developed by LiquidCool Solutions, which uses a closed-loop system to cool servers with liquid rather than fans. The center will use Canadian hydropower from New Brunswick. It’s unclear how it will affect Mainers’ electric bills.

The LiquidCool Solutions technology “represents a clean break from past practice and is likely to draw international interest,” said Herb Zien, vice chair of LiquidCool Solutions, a technology development company based in Rochester, Minnesota.

“We think the project in Maine is going to be a trendsetter,” he said. “It’s a great site for a data center.”

The data center has entered into a long-term lease for 115,000 square feet of space — a move that Green 4 Maine says marks a milestone in the revitalization of the former air base.

Scott Hinkel, managing director of Green 4 Maine, said this data center is intended to be the first of multiple such centers at the location. The company has already talked to others who are interested in moving into the former air base, where the existing large buildings with tall ceilings are perfect for data centers, he said.

Hinkel said the property is also desirable because it has a fiber optic network that connects directly to Boston, providing the fast internet speed needed for data centers.

“Maine is poised to do very well in the data world coming up,” Hinkel said.

Hinkel said Green 4 Maine is committed to revitalizing northern Maine through “visionary” energy and economic development initiatives like the partnership with LiquidCool Solutions. The data centers will create new jobs, Hinkel said. Though it was unclear how many, he said Green 4 Maine is starting to raise capital to build 1,500 to 2,000 housing units on the base for workers.

Demand for large-scale data centers has skyrocketed with the recent growth of generative AI.

By the end of 2024, more than 1,200 data centers had already been built or approved for construction nationwide, according to an analysis by Business Insider.

In Wiscasset, town officials are considering whether to allow the construction of a large data center on town-owned property next to the shuttered Maine Yankee Atomic Energy Plant. Town officials have not said what company is behind the idea because of a nondisclosure agreement.

While other AI-minded data center developers previously expressed interest in Maine in the past, those plans have fizzled out. After announcing plans in 2021, a California company quietly backed out of building a $300 million data center at a shuttered paper mill in Millinocket after determining it could not produce enough power there or attract the AI customer it wanted, the Bangor Daily News reported.