- Oracle is pitching fuel cells as a cleaner fix for its massive $165B Project Jupiter data center in New Mexico
- The shift cuts projected emissions and water use, but natural gas will still power the site
- With public backlash mounting and lawmakers eyeing a data center moratorium, approval isn’t a sure thing
Oracle is touting changes to its plans for a massive 1,400-acre, 2+GW data center campus in New Mexico as it awaits a key permit for the project, hoping its new plan will be enough to win over regulators despite extensive public backlash against the project.
The campus in question is Stargate’s $165 billion Project Jupiter data center, one of a series of super-campuses OpenAI and its partners are seeking to build around the world. Oracle is the tenant for the Project Jupiter campus in New Mexico.
Project Jupiter’s plans initially called for the construction of a natural gas plant on the site to help power the massive facility. But that plan was scrapped in favor of Bloom Energy’s fuel cell technology after local leaders and the public strongly voiced concerns about emissions and water usage.
Oracle’s development partner, Yucca Growth Infrastructure, is currently seeking an air quality permit for the revised plan from the New Mexico Environmental Department (NMED).
Public comment on the plan closed Tuesday. But before the comment window closed, Oracle published an op-ed, issued a blog and publicly posted a letter to the Department in an apparent effort to show residents it is listening to them.
Changes to Project Jupiter
In its letter to the NMED, Oracle said the new fuel cell plan will “reduce nitrogen oxide emissions by approximately 92 percent, carbon monoxide by 67 percent, volatile organic compounds by 38 percent, particulate matter by 83 percent, and carbon dioxide by 21 percent” compared to the old plan featuring the natural gas plant. It also noted its new plan will slash water usage since Bloom Energy’s cells only require an initial water fill-up and limited maintenance.
Oracle also said it has “committed to pay for all energy costs for Project Jupiter…ensuring these costs are not passed on to ratepayers.” However, it is not clear that there is any enforcement mechanism to ensure it does so.
In its blog, though, Oracle made clear that natural gas will still factor into its plan, noting that while the fuel cell technology can in theory “operate on hydrogen or biogas if those fuels become commercially viable,” it will initially use natural gas as its power source. Oracle argued that natural gas is already widely used by U.S. electric grid operators to power homes and that its plan will produce “substantially lower local emissions than any combustion-based generators.”
U.S resident concerns prompt regulatory rework
Oracle's struggles with Project Jupiter reflect a growing backlash against large-scale data center projects across the U.S. as residents worry about noise, electricity rates and water consumption. These concerns recently prompted federal utility regulators to require the country's grid operators to rework their rate plans for large load customers (i.e. data centers) to ensure residential rate payers don't end up footing the bill for new infrastructure require to serve large load users.
While these issues are currently the domain of hyperscale data center operators, they could become increasingly relevant for telcos in the U.S. and (more likely) abroad who decide to get into the compute game.
Despite Oracle's new pitch, New Mexico officials and residents aren’t necessarily convinced the data center will be a good thing for the local community.
Local news outlet Source NM reported that the facility would emit 10 million tons of greenhouse gasses per year under the new fuel cell-based plan. While that’s an improvement from the 14 million tons outlined in the original natural gas plant plan, it’s still more than the combined emissions (6.7 million tons) of New Mexico’s two largest cities.
KRWG reported that during a recent public listening session, State Senator Jeff Steinborn stated such high emissions were unacceptable. Three other New Mexico senators expressed concerns about the project as well.
Other state lawmakers have proposed a temporary moratorium on new data center projects in the state to allow for environmental regulations to be updated.
It is not clear when the NMED will issue its final decision on Project Jupiter’s air quality permit.
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