Oracle says Project Jupiter remains on track despite power supply concerns

Oracle's Project Jupiter, a large data center campus near Santa Teresa, New Mexico, is encountering significant hurdles related to its power infrastructure. Oracle issued a force majeure notice to its developer, Stack Infrastructure, indicating potential rent payment delays of up to three years if the power supply, crucial for the data center's operation, is not delivered on time. The primary issues involve an outstanding air permit from the New Mexico Environment Department for a 2.45-gigawatt Bloom Energy fuel-cell power plant and persistent permitting challenges for a new natural gas pipeline by Transwestern Pipeline, a subsidiary of Energy Transfer, intended to supply fuel.

Despite these challenges, which include lawsuits filed by opponents before the New Mexico Supreme Court regarding the air permit and multiple rejections by the New Mexico State Land Office for the pipeline's right-of-way, Oracle asserts the project remains on schedule. Oracle spokesman Michael Egbert clarified that force majeure notices are common in large-scale developments and do not automatically signify a delay. Doña Ana County officials, who have a 30-year tax agreement with the developers, confirmed no direct notification from Oracle regarding changes to their commitments.

The article also detailed power supply complications for Meta's data center in El Paso, Texas. Administrative Law Judges Cassandra Quinn and Arthur D'Andrea recommended that the Public Utility Commission of Texas deny El Paso Electric permission to construct the $500 million McCloud power plant. This denial is conditioned on El Paso Electric ensuring that Meta bears the full capital and operating costs of the plant, rejecting the utility's proposal to eventually shift costs to general ratepayers.