Includes an LOI for an additional 203 acres
Texas Critical Data Centers (TCDC) has closed the acquisition of 235 acres of land in Ector County, Texas, from Grow Odessa, where it plans to build a natural gas-powered AI data center.
TCDC is a 50/50 joint venture (JV) between upstream natural gas provider New Era Helium and Sharon AI. The data center is expected to have an initial capacity of 250MW, with the potential to scale beyond 1GW. According to the partners, it will integrate advanced energy, cooling, and the potential for Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) technologies.
In addition to the land acquisition, TCDC has also signed an exclusive Letter of Intent with Grow Odessa for an additional 203 acres, which could see the site expand to 438 acres. The site, which is close to the City of Odessa, has access to fiber and multiple large intrastate natural gas transmission lines.
Commenting on the deal, E. Will Gray II, CEO of New Era, said: “Closing on this site marks a key milestone in our strategy to align Permian Basin energy assets with the explosive growth in AI and HPC demand. It advances our long-term vision to transform these resources into critical digital infrastructure, creating a high-impact, future-ready platform that will deliver scalable growth and meaningful value for shareholders.”
To support the build-out of the facility, the company intends to apply to form an Industrial District with the City of Odessa to facilitate access to municipal services such as water and wastewater treatment. TCDC said that doing so will enable it to maintain favorable Ector County zoning regulations rather than adopt City of Odessa zoning, which will expedite its speed to market.
The JV was established in late 2024, and originally envisioned a 90MW data center. However, following the acquisition of a larger plot of land, the project was expanded to 250MW.
The site will be developed in phases, with the first 100MW segment expected to come online by December 2026. The remaining 150MW is slated for completion six months after the first phase is completed. The timeline for expansion to 1GW has not been shared.
The facility’s power structure will be anchored by reciprocating natural gas engines. In June, the company signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with PowerForward Energy to supply onsite generation for the project. The MoU will set the parameters for a power supply agreement between the companies, which will see PowerForward provide 250MW of onsite power for the planned data center.
Founded last year, Sharon AI is a high-performance computing company focused on AI cloud GPU compute infrastructure.
New Era Helium is an exploration and production company that sources helium produced in association with the production of natural gas reserves in the US.
