Vantage Data Centers announced that it plans to invest over $25 billion to establish a data center campus spanning 1,200 acres in Shackelford County, Texas, driven by the increasing demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure that is fueling large-scale projects.
Supported by private equity firm Silver Lake and asset manager DigitalBridge, Vantage stated that the 1.4-gigawatt campus, named "Frontier," represents the largest development in its global portfolio.
The high computational needs of chatbots like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini are driving the demand for specially designed data centers. These facilities come with high costs due to requirements for advanced chips, servers, and sufficient power and cooling solutions.
Major companies such as Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta Platforms are investing billions to enhance and establish their own data center operations.
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Vantage has announced that construction of the campus is underway, which will feature 10 data centers designed to accommodate ultra-high-density racks exceeding 250 kilowatts each. The first building is expected to be completed in the latter half of next year.
Silver Lake was a founding investor in Vantage in 2010, and Vantage's CEO, Sureel Choksi, joined the firm in 2013 after previously working at Silver Lake.
After departing Vantage in 2017, Silver Lake was invited back on an exclusive basis in 2023 to assist in capital raising and co-leading a $9.2 billion equity financing with DigitalBridge set for 2024.
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“Texas has emerged as a vital and strategic market for AI providers. Specifically, the initiation of our Frontier campus with 1.4GW of GPU compute capacity marks a pivotal moment for Vantage as we fulfill our commitment to meet our customers' unprecedented needs,” stated Dana Adams, president of North America at Vantage Data Centers. “This investment in Texas will significantly contribute to economic growth in the region as we rapidly implement the digital infrastructure required to support AI applications. We are eager to integrate into such a friendly and proud community.”
Shackleford County is located approximately 125 miles west of Fort Worth, near Abilene, where Crusoe is constructing a large campus for Oracle and OpenAI. Albany, the largest town in the county, lies about 35 miles northeast of Abilene.
Reports that Vantage was planning a sizable campus in Texas emerged in July, with the firm confirming the news without providing additional details. At that time, the company was rumored to be pursuing development at the intersection of Highway 604 and Highway 351.
DigitalBridge-owned Vantage operates or is in the process of developing data centers throughout the US, including locations in Ohio, Georgia, Texas, California, Virginia, Arizona, Indiana, Nevada, Wisconsin, and Washington.