NVIDIA Partners with SB Energy as OpenAI Leases 8GW Ohio AI Data Center for 20 Years
Nvidia announced an agreement with SB Energy to exclusively supply AI compute infrastructure at the PORTS-Pike technology park in Pike County, Ohio. OpenAI has signed on as a customer, leasing a total of 8 IT-GW of compute capacity over a 20-year term. The project, which involves the U.S. Department of Energy, marks another step in Nvidia's expansion from chip supplier into investing in and locking up compute infrastructure.
Confirmed
- The project is located at the PORTS-Pike technology park in Pike County, Ohio, built in partnership between NVIDIA and SB Energy, with NVIDIA exclusively hosting its AI compute
- OpenAI has signed an agreement to be the customer for roughly 8 GW of IT load capacity (and corresponding power capacity) at the park, on a 20-year lease
- Initial capacity is 4.25 IT-GW, with an option to add 3.75 IT-GW for a total of 8 IT-GW
- NVIDIA will provide credit support for land, power, and shell construction, and is investing $1.5 billion for a stake in SB Energy
- The six-year project runs through 2032 and is expected to create 35,000 construction jobs
- Partners also include the U.S. Department of Energy
Why it matters
- The deal extends Nvidia's recent "equity-for-compute-orders" playbook: by investing $1.5 billion in SB Energy and providing credit support, it locks in a 20-year OpenAI lease, further cementing Nvidia's dominance in the AI compute supply chain
- At the 8 GW scale, the park ranks among the largest U.S. compute buildouts, and its Ohio location reflects the trend of compute infrastructure spreading toward regions with abundant power resources
2026-08-17 ~ 2026-08-17 · 9 related posts
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- Episode 2: Nvidia Partners with Wall Street Giants for $500B AI Infrastructure Fund(2026-08-12, 8 posts)
- Episode 3: Nvidia's Compute Securitization Plan Slammed by Michael Burry and Critics(2026-08-12, 2 posts)
- Episode 4: Big Short Investor Warns Nvidia AI Hype Like Enron(2026-08-13, 3 posts)
- Episode 5: Nvidia to Cut OpenAI Data Center Guarantee to $120B(2026-08-15, 4 posts)
- Episode 6: NVIDIA, Goldman Sachs Mobilize $500B for AI Infrastructure with GPUs as Collateral(2026-08-15, 2 posts)
- Episode 7: Nvidia in Talks to Invest Up to $3B in SB Energy, Back $100B OpenAI Data Center Financing(2026-08-16, 6 posts)
- Episode 8: NVIDIA Partners with SB Energy as OpenAI Leases 8GW Ohio AI Data Center for 20 Years(2026-08-17, 9 posts)
Primary sources
- [source] NVIDIA to Provide Exclusive AI Infrastructure at Ohio Campus for OpenAI — nvidia · 2026-08-17
- Nvidia: Land, Power, and Shell Are Critical Resources for AI Factories — firstadopter · 2026-08-17
7 near-duplicate retellings: nvidia · firstadopter · firstadopter · firstadopter · firstadopter · rohanpaul_ai · rohanpaul_ai