Lobbyists revealed for Project Jupiter data center in New Mexico's Santa Teresa
Lobbyists for Project Jupiter, a large data center in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, have been identified, including those representing STACK Infrastructure, Bloom Energy, Oracle, and OpenAI. The project faces scrutiny over its air quality permit and water usage, with public consultations scheduled by the New Mexico Environment Department regarding local drinking water quality. Opposition and legislative concerns about the project's influence are ongoing.
The Santa Fe New Mexican revealed the lobbyists for Project Jupiter, a large data center in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, designed for artificial intelligence infrastructure. The list, obtained from an email by lobbyist Marco Gonzales to the Legislative Finance Committee, includes prominent New Mexico political figures. Scott Forrester, a veteran Democratic consultant, lobbies for Bloom Energy, which will supply fuel cells. Vanessa Alarid, an Albuquerque lobbyist married to state Sen. Antonio "Moe" Maestas, represents Yucca Growth Infrastructure, the air quality permit applicant, and also the Water Access Treatment and Reuse Alliance (WATR Alliance).
Marcos Gonzales lobbies for developer STACK Infrastructure, while Rich Guay and Jessie Lane Hunt lobby for Oracle and OpenAI, respectively. State Rep. Micaela Lara Cadena (D-Mesilla) expressed concerns over the "who's-who of power brokers" involved, highlighting the need for transparency regarding who is advancing Project Jupiter's interests. The New Mexico Environment Department has scheduled public consultations and a community meeting in Sunland Park and Santa Teresa next week to address local drinking water quality concerns, a region historically affected by high arsenic levels. This comes amidst an ongoing "air quality permit fight" for the data center. Oracle also recently issued a "force majeure" notice to a developer, seeking to limit liability if the data center is not operational by 2028.