Nvidia Backs SB Energy for 10GW OpenAI Data Center in Ohio
Nvidia is partnering with SB Energy to build a 10-gigawatt data center in Ohio for OpenAI, with Nvidia becoming the exclusive chip provider and backstopping the deal. This project, which includes a 9.2GW natural gas plant financed by the US government and Japan, marks OpenAI's strategic shift away from third-party cloud providers.
Marley Kayden reported on a significant partnership involving Nvidia, OpenAI, and SB Energy for the development of a 10-gigawatt data center in Ohio. This project, set to become one of the largest AI hubs, involves Nvidia securing land, power, and shell capacity through its partnership with SB Energy, a subsidiary of Japan's SoftBank. OpenAI is the primary customer for this data center.
Due to OpenAI lacking investment-grade credit, Nvidia stepped in to back the deal, guaranteeing a portion of the completed data center's value, starting with the initial five-gigawatt phase. In exchange for this commitment, Nvidia will be the exclusive chip provider for the first half of the Ohio site and has made a $1.5 billion equity investment in SB Energy. The support from Nvidia aims to facilitate financing by providing lenders with confidence in the data center's value, even if OpenAI were to cease tenancy. The commitment includes mitigation steps, such as SB Energy attempting to lease or sell the site to another party before Nvidia is obligated to make payments up to $105 billion.
The project will also include the construction of a 9.2-gigawatt natural gas plant, which will be owned by the U.S. government and financed by Japan under a recent trade deal. This move signifies OpenAI's strategic shift away from relying solely on third-party cloud providers like Microsoft, Amazon, and Oracle, positioning itself as a direct tenant and a frontrunner in the AI compute race.