Crusoe, an eight-year-old data center developer based in Denver and recently valued at $30.9 billion, has confirmed the sale of an incomplete data center project in southeastern Wyoming to Google.
Initially seeking Google as a client for the project, Crusoe ultimately faced challenges regarding its costs and construction schedule, leading Google to assume management of the development.
The project was announced last year in collaboration with Tallgrass, a company backed by Blackstone, with plans to eventually expand it to a power capacity of 10 gigawatts.
While the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, Google has indicated it plans to invest $17 billion into the data center campus.
This transaction underscores the difficulties independent data center developers face when managing large-scale projects, including hurdles in securing necessary equipment and energy. Additionally, growing local opposition can further hamper development efforts.
Despite taking control of the Wyoming site, Google remains engaged with Crusoe, which is also developing another data center for the tech giant in the vicinity of Amarillo, Texas.
The news of the sale emerged in June, but Crusoe has continued to thrive, raising $3.9 billion in funding in September despite the setbacks in Wyoming.
Crusoe generates revenue by leasing data center space to clients who provide their own GPUs, offering rental of its own GPUs, and selling computing power utilized for AI model operations, known as inference.
The company’s major projects cater to prominent players in the AI field. Its facility in Abilene, Texas, is being developed in phases for clients including Oracle and OpenAI, while a separate 900-megawatt campus is under construction for Microsoft, expected to begin operations in mid-2027. Meta is also among its clients, and a report indicated that trading firm Jane Street has entered into a $13 billion, five-year cloud agreement with Crusoe.
Founded by Chase Lochmiller, who serves as CEO, and Cully Cavness, Crusoe originally focused on cryptocurrency mining powered by natural gas that would otherwise be flared. Alongside its recent funding round, the company welcomed three new board members, including JB Straubel, founder of Redwood Materials and a member of Tesla’s board, who invested in Crusoe in 2021. Crusoe later became the first customer of Straubel’s energy-storage venture.
