The first project from the artificial intelligence industry's Stargate venture landed $7.1 billion from lenders led by JPMorgan to help fund the second phase of a major data center campus underway on a tract in West Texas that's bigger than New York City's Central Park.
The second phase spans six buildings on the 875-acre site in Abilene, a city about 150 miles west of Fort Worth. Once built, the high-profile data center campus with a total of eight buildings is expected to provide 1.2 gigawatts to the power-intensive AI center. One gigawatt can power 750,000 to 1 million homes.
Brokerage Newmark arranged the $7.1 billion construction loan for Blue Owl Capital Inc., Crusoe and Primary Digital Infrastructure, the joint venture developing the data center campus, according to a statement. The data centers are expected to be used by global tech firm Oracle, representing the first project through a venture called Stargate that was announced at the beginning of the year.
Stargate, backed by AI giant OpenAI, Oracle and Softbank, announced plans to spend $500 billion on new data centers and other infrastructure as the U.S. looks to lead the world in the development of AI. Texas was selected for its first development partly because the state can provide the energy needed to power the campus. Developers have filed permits to operate natural gas turbines at the site and have discussed generating power there with solar and wind projects and modular nuclear reactors as well.
The "landmark transaction" between Crusoe, Blue Owl and Primary Infrastructure represents a "significant milestone in the evolution of sustainable digital infrastructure," said Jordan Roeschlaub, co-president of Newmark's global debt and structured finance group, in the statement.
Infrastructure provider Crusoe is leading the $15 billion joint venture behind the AI data hub in West Texas. The first two buildings in the initial phase are scheduled for completion next month. Construction on the second phase began in March and is expected to be completed by mid-2026.
Representatives for Newmark and Crusoe did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment from CoStar News.
"This partnership not only validates Crusoe's innovative approach to energy and computing but also highlights the growing role of infrastructure capital in enabling next-generation technologies," Newmark's Roeschlaub said in the statement.
Newmark also served as a strategic adviser on the project's first phase, securing equity and debt financing.
For the record
Newmark's Roeschlaub, Nick Scribani and Ben Kroll arranged the funding in collaboration with Newmark's head of data center capital markets Brent Mayo, as well as Doug Harmon and Andrew Warin.