Tech Giants Race To Grab Power for Data Centers

AI is pushing the power grid to its limits, and the biggest tech companies are securing new energy sources to keep growth moving. Meta, Google, and OpenAI are locking in power purchase agreements (PPAs) for hyperscale data centers years before those facilities even come online.

The rush to negotiate long-term agreements directly with power producers comes as interconnection queues are jammed, with more than 1,480 GW of renewable, nuclear, and hydrogen capacity currently awaiting transmission access nationwide, per Berkeley Lab data. Instead of waiting for the grid to catch up, data center hyperscalers are helping bring power online themselves.

A Vantage Data Centers facility in Virginia. Image used courtesy of Vantage Data Centers

Meta Secures Solar Projects Opening in 2027

Meta has signed two PPAs totaling nearly 1 GW across two states.

A 385 MW deal with independent power producer Treaty Oak Clean Energy covers environmental attributes from two utility-scale solar farms in Louisiana, both coming online in 2027: The 200 MW, 2,300-acre Hollis Creek Solar project and the 185 MW, 1,600-acre Beekman Solar project.

The Hollis Creek (left) and Beekman (right) solar projects in Louisiana. Image used courtesy of Treaty Oak Energy

A separate agreement with Engie adds 600 MW from the Swenson Ranch Solar project in Texas, the largest single asset in Engie's 11 GW-plus portfolio, also targeting 2027. The agreement brings the pair's partnership to 1.3 GW of projects, including two deals last year to support Meta's data center expansion.

Meta’s power procurement strategy focuses on securing “additionality,” as the company calls it, teaming up with developers and utilities on grid expansions. According to its 2025 Sustainability Report, Meta has already contracted over 15 GW of renewables in 10 years worldwide, making it one of the largest corporate clean energy buyers.

Renewable-Powered Data Centers for OpenAI and Oracle

OpenAI, Oracle, and Vantage Data Centers are building "Lighthouse," a massive $15 billion data center campus in Wisconsin that will run on renewable power. Vantage will build and operate the 672-acre site, Oracle will anchor tenancy with cloud capacity, and OpenAI gains dedicated compute for its AI models.

Expected to be completed in 2028, Lighthouse will cover 2.5 million square feet across four data center buildings, totaling almost 1 GW of IT load capacity (902 MW). The campus will also use a closed-loop cooling system with reduced water requirements, combined with air-cooled and liquid-to-liquid systems for heavy GPU workloads. Vantage is investing millions in regional infrastructure upgrades, including expanded water facilities and power infrastructure.

The project’s scale is unprecedented for the region, with Lighthouse projected to become one of the largest single power users in Wisconsin’s grid history. Vantage, which is developing solar, wind, and battery storage projects in the state. According to the company, 70% of that capacity will go towards Lighthouse, with the remaining 30% allocated to consumers.

OpenAI and Oracle are developing a massive center hub in Wisconsin. Image used courtesy of Vantage Data Centers

The Wisconsin campus follows OpenAI and Oracle's earlier plan to expand compute capacity in their Stargate program by 4.5 GW over the next five years.

Google To Reopen Nuclear Power Restart

Google and NextEra Energy signed a 25-year PPA for 615 MW from the Duane Arnold Energy Center near Cedar Rapids, which had been Iowa's only nuclear plant for about 45 years before shutting down in August 2020. The agreement covers restart costs and shields Iowa consumers from financial impacts. Operations are expected to resume by early 2029, subject to regulatory approval.

Iowa's Duane Arnold Energy Center. Image used courtesy of NextEra Energy

The structure lets Google match baseload nuclear power against its data center demand, supporting the company's goal to operate on 24/7 carbon-free energy instead of annual renewable offsets. With this deal, Google and NextEra now have almost 3 GW of energy projects nationwide.