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Blue Energy to build gas-nuclear data centre

Blue Energy to build gas-nuclear data centre

Crusoe and Blue Energy partner to develop nuclear data centre. The 1.5 GW campus in South Texas will initially use gas-based power, transitioning to nuclear by 2031. The project aims to deliver cost-effective, zero-emissions energy with reduced construction timelines….

Crusoe, an AI infrastructure provider, and Blue Energy, a modular nuclear power plant company, have announced a partnership to develop and operate a 1.5 GW nuclear-powered data centre campus at the Port of Victoria in South Texas. The collaboration will initiate the world’s first gas-to-nuclear conversion to supply natural gas-based power to the Crusoe-developed AI facility by 2028, transitioning to nuclear power by 2031.

Crusoe, founded in 2018 by CEO Chase Lochmiller and President Cully Cavness, employs a vertically integrated approach to build power and compute infrastructure simultaneously, facilitating the swift deployment of AI infrastructure. This model also supports the scaling of emerging clean energy sources. Blue Energy, established in 2023 by Jake Jurewicz and Matt Slotkin, focuses on reducing construction time for modular nuclear power plants to deliver affordable, zero-emissions electricity competitively priced against fossil fuels and renewables.

Andrew Likens, Crusoe’s Vice President of Energy Infrastructure & Development, stated that powering the AI revolution necessitates rethinking energy. Crusoe is committed to building infrastructure that requires abundant, reliable, and clean power. Blue Energy’s gas-to-nuclear approach provides the rapid transition to carbon-free baseload power that only nuclear energy can offer.

Blue Energy claims its plant design can reduce the time to power to 36 months or less using a natural gas bridge, alongside cutting construction costs. The company’s strategy involves prefabricating nuclear plants from existing parts and building them in existing shipyards, which can lower costs, reduce supply chain delays, and simplify construction by minimising reinforced concrete requirements.

The selected 1,600-acre Texas campus offers strategic advantages including location, existing infrastructure, and energy resources, being close to current and planned transmission lines and fibre optic networks, and providing access to one of the largest natural gas pipeline systems in the U.S. Jake Jurewicz, Blue Energy Co-Founder and CEO, remarked that the partnership with AI infrastructure leader Crusoe is a significant milestone, aiming to meet rising global energy demand with cost and schedule certainty.

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BQ

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