Energy Vault and Crusoe Break Ground on First Modular Data Center in Snyder, Texas

Battery energy storage firm Energy Vault has broken ground on its first data center campus in Snyder, Texas, in partnership with AI infrastructure developer Crusoe. The project marks a significant step for Energy Vault as it expands beyond energy storage into the data center sector, and demonstrates the growing trend of modular, prefabricated AI data centers paired with on-site renewable power.

The campus will initially host ten Crusoe Spark modular data center units, delivering a combined IT capacity of 8 megawatts. The site is designed for potential expansion to 25 megawatts in a second phase, signaling flexibility for future demand. Crusoe Spark, announced in June 2025, is a prefabricated AI data center housed in a shipping-container-sized chassis. Crusoe describes it as a fully integrated AI solution that incorporates GPU racks, cooling, power distribution, remote monitoring, and fire suppression into a transportable unit.

Construction activities are already underway, including fiber installation, site preparation, power infrastructure, and enabling works. An exact completion date has not been disclosed, but Crusoe claims it can deploy the units in “as little as three months” thanks to prefabrication at its facility in Brighton, Colorado. The IT capacity from the data center will feed into Crusoe Cloud.

Under the agreement, Energy Vault has purchased the Crusoe Spark units and subsequently leased them back to Crusoe to power its cloud services, including its managed inference service line. The modular data center units are expected to be powered by a combination of solar energy and battery energy storage operated by Energy Vault. It remains unclear whether the Snyder site has a grid connection for backup or supplemental power; inquiries have been made for further details.

Separately, Energy Vault is pursuing the first grid-scale deployment of its gravity-based storage technology at the same Snyder facility. However, that demonstration project is unlikely to be used to power the data center units. The data center project was first announced in February 2026 as part of a strategic framework agreement between the two companies.

Founded in 2018, Crusoe initially focused on crypto mining facilities, developing over 250 megawatts of capacity across seven U.S. states before pivoting toward AI and cloud data centers. The company is now best known as the developer of OpenAI's Stargate data center campus in Abilene, Texas. Recently, it began offering a new edge offering based on its Spark modular units. Energy Vault develops and operates grid-scale energy storage projects using battery, gravity, and hydrogen technologies, and has signed several deals to supply data center operators with energy storage systems. Notably, in December 2024, it partnered with RackScale Data Centers to deliver 2 gigawatts and 20 gigawatt-hours of primary power through its battery energy storage system.