Bolt Data and Texas Pacific Land Forge Partnership to Develop AI Data Center Campuses in West Texas
December 18, 2025
In a significant move to capitalize on the surging demand for artificial intelligence (AI) computing infrastructure, data center developer Bolt Data & Energy has entered a strategic partnership with major landowner Texas Pacific Land Corporation (TPL). The alliance aims to develop large-scale data center campuses across TPL's vast land holdings in West Texas, positioning the region as a new frontier for energy-intensive AI workloads.
The partnership was announced alongside a $150 million capital raise by Bolt Data, which includes a $50 million investment from TPL. In return for its investment and land access, TPL will receive an equity interest in Bolt, warrants, and a right of first refusal to supply water to the planned data center projects and related infrastructure. The collaboration leverages TPL's portfolio of more than 880,000 acres spread across 20 counties in West Texas, a significant portion of which is located in the resource-rich Permian Basin.
Eric Schmidt, Chairman of Bolt Data and former CEO of Google, outlined the venture's ambitious vision, stating, "Our goal is to create the largest and most efficient data center company in the world by combining abundant energy production, efficient and scalable data infrastructure, and the largest land expansion runway in North America." The company is actively pursuing commercial partnerships and anchor tenants to develop these facilities.
Ty Glover, CEO of TPL, emphasized the strategic fit of West Texas for next-generation computing. "Bolt represents a significant step forward in bringing world-class technology infrastructure to West Texas," Glover said. "With unmatched supply of both conventional fuel and renewable power, West Texas is a global leader for energy production. The region also benefits from a skilled workforce, a supportive regulatory environment, available water resources, and a strong entrepreneurial culture. We believe West Texas has the attributes necessary to become one of the largest concentrations of AI compute infrastructure globally."
The deal underscores a broader industry trend of seeking locations with abundant power and land to support the exponential growth of AI data centers. By tapping into the established energy infrastructure and land resources of the Permian Basin, the partnership aims to build a scalable platform capable of meeting the massive computational and power demands of future AI models and high-performance computing applications.
Source: datacenterdynamics
Bolt Data and Texas Pacific Land Forge Partnership to Develop AI Data Center Campuses in West Texas
