Energy Vault secured a $600 million contract for AI data center power infrastructure, expanding its deployment footprint.

Energy Vault has secured a $600 million contract—its largest ever—to build 1.25 gigawatts of power infrastructure for AI data centers in Texas. The project, centered on a campus in Snyder, Texas, represents a pivotal example of how the AI boom is reshaping the energy industry.

Construction on the Snyder site began on July 27, 2026, with an initial phase delivering 8 MW of powered shell capacity, expandable to 25 MW. The full campus could eventually accommodate up to 500 MW, with commercial operations for the first modular data centers targeted for Q1 2027.

Energy Vault is providing the complete energy backbone needed: powered land, electrical systems, battery storage, and modular data center capacity—bundled into a single turnkey package. This infrastructure will support Crusoe Cloud's modular data centers. Crusoe signed a strategic framework agreement with Energy Vault in early 2026, paving the way for phased deployments at Snyder. Under the arrangement, Energy Vault is purchasing 10 Crusoe Spark units and leasing them back, with Energy Vault providing power infrastructure and capacity while Crusoe provides compute.

Texas's deregulated power market, operated by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), allows large consumers to negotiate directly for power at competitive rates. AI data centers operating within ERCOT require robust, redundant energy supplies to ensure reliability—where Energy Vault's core competency lies. The company has built grid-scale energy storage projects across Texas, including the 57 MW/114 MWh Cross Trails battery energy storage system. The Snyder campus represents a logical evolution: rather than selling storage to grid operators, Energy Vault now packages storage with complete power infrastructure and sells it directly to customers.

The expansion potential at Snyder, scaling from 8 MW to potentially 500 MW, illustrates the phased approach: both Energy Vault and Crusoe match capital deployment to actual customer commitments rather than building massive facilities upfront. For Energy Vault, the $600 million contract marks a significant revenue anchor after historically deriving most business from standalone energy storage, having transitioned from gravity-based EVx systems to comprehensive power infrastructure solutions.