Business & Finance
Oracle Downplays Concerns Over $165 Billion New Mexico AI Campus
Oracle dismissed growing worries about its $165 billion Project Jupiter AI data‑centre campus in New Mexico during a speech at Oracle AI World in Las Vegas on October 27. Mahesh Thiagarajan, Oracle’s president of Cloud Infrastructure, said the company is not overly concerned, describing the campus as one of the 30 to 40 data‑centre projects Oracle develops each quarter.
The comments come amid tension after Oracle issued a force‑majeure notice to a unit of Blue Owl Capital, which owns the developer STACK Infrastructure. The notice allows Oracle to delay rent for up to three years if power issues prevent the campus from opening in 2028. The roughly $18 billion construction loan for the site has traded at stressed levels, and Oracle shares have fallen more than 30 % this year.
Project Jupiter, located near Santa Teresa in Doña Ana County, covers 1,400 acres and is one of the flagship Stargate sites for OpenAI. The campus is under construction, but power approvals are pending. The site is planned to draw up to 2.45 GW from a private microgrid of Bloom Energy fuel cells that run on natural gas. Oracle switched from gas turbines to fuel cells in April, claiming the change cuts nitrogen‑oxide emissions by about 92 %.
The New Mexico Supreme Court paused the air‑quality permit process in August, lifted the stay in September, and a permitting hearing is scheduled for December 7 in Sunland Park. The Green Chile pipeline that would supply gas still needs federal approval, and its start date has slipped to February 2027. The state Land Office has cancelled rights‑of‑way for parts of the pipeline route.
Thiagarajan told county commissioners in July that the campus could connect to the grid if the permit is not obtained. Oracle says the project is on schedule and that force‑majeure notices are common for projects of this scale.
Under the lease, Oracle is responsible for securing power and covering the project’s debt costs, leaving the company with significant risk as it has taken on about $125 billion in debt to fund its data‑centre build‑out.
Oracle markets Project Jupiter as an economic boost for New Mexico, estimating it will generate more than $13 billion in economic impact and support over 3,100 jobs in the county once fully operational. So far, 1,230 New Mexico residents have worked on the site.
Investors will look to Oracle’s upcoming investor day for further clarity. Bank of America analysts expect updates on major data‑centre projects and indications of whether Oracle can meet its fiscal 2030 revenue targets amid rising capital costs. Thiagarajan’s remarks coincided with Oracle’s expansion of its collaboration with OpenAI, integrating ChatGPT and Codex into its applications.
Frequently asked questions
What is Project Jupiter and where is it located?
Project Jupiter is a $165 billion AI data‑centre campus located near Santa Teresa in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, covering 1,400 acres.
How is Project Jupiter powered and what emissions reduction has been achieved?
The campus will use a private microgrid of Bloom Energy fuel cells that run on natural gas, drawing up to 2.45 GW, and switching from gas turbines to fuel cells in April cuts nitrogen‑oxide emissions by about 92 %.
What financial impact does Project Jupiter have on Oracle?
Oracle has taken on about $125 billion in debt to fund its data‑centre build‑out, and the $18 billion construction loan for Project Jupiter has traded at stressed levels, with Oracle shares falling more than 30 % this year.