Texas has become awash with both big-money data centers and energy campuses in recent years, as the state has positioned itself as a leader in evolutionary technology and repositioned itself as a leader in generating power. Now, the state will soon be home to what’s being called the largest data energy complex in the world.
Fermi America and the Texas Tech University system are partnering on what they’re calling a HyperGrid campus, which will combine nuclear, solar, gas and battery energy storage over 5,769 acres in Amarillo, according to a news release. The plant would potentially generate up to 11 gigawatts (GW) of power, or enough to energize somewhere around 8-10 million homes. It would also house around 18 million square feet of artificial intelligence capacity, according to a news release.
Also, it’s an attempt to catch up in the energy arms race with China, according to Fermi co-founder and former Texas governor Rick Perry.
“The Chinese are building 22 nuclear reactors today to power the future of AI. America has none. We’re behind, and it’s all hands on deck,” Perry said. “President Trump’s first Executive Order addressed the energy issue and emphasized the need to continue making America energy dominant.”
Perry added that it’s time for “a nuclear power energy renaissance,” and that will seemingly start in the Lone Star State. Fermi and Texas Tech aim to start delivering power from the site by the end of 2026.
An application for construction obtained by the Washington Post noted the facility would be called the Donald J. Trump Advanced Energy and Intelligence Campus. Fermi’s Linkedin page includes posts citing Elon Musk and lists tags like #MakeAmericaNuclearAgain.
Reuters reported that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission was reviewing Fermi’s applications, which include plans for four 1-GW nuclear reactors.
While the nuclear “renaissance” hasn’t yet taken off, Texas has seen an abundance of progress in both data storage and sustainable energy generation. Energy Abundance’s massive data center on 50,000 acres is being constructed near Laredo. The $500 billion Stargate project is underway in the West Texas city of Abilene. That’s not to mention the smaller projects that have been announced over the past year alone.