OpenAI in Talks to Lease Nvidia-Backed 10-Gigawatt Ohio Data Center

TradingKey - On June 9, ET, sources familiar with the matter said OpenAI is in advanced negotiations to lease a planned 10-gigawatt data center campus in Ohio. The campus is proposed for construction on federal land, and Nvidia ( NVDA) may provide financial backing.

Based on current chip, labor, and power prices, the total cost of the fully completed campus is estimated at at least $500 billion. OpenAI plans to sign a 20-year lease and assume payment obligations once the project is operational. The first phase of approximately 800 megawatts is expected to launch in 2028, marking OpenAI's largest single infrastructure investment to date.

Negotiations are not yet finalized, and the plan remains subject to change. If the project is realized, it means that beyond its existing large-scale server lease agreements with Microsoft ( MSFT ), Oracle ( ORCL ), and Amazon ( AMZN) cloud services, OpenAI still seeks to maintain independent control over its data centers.

This approach is similar to OpenAI's previously proposed "Stargate" initiative, which originally aimed to form a joint venture with Oracle and SoftBank to build $500 billion in data center capacity, but the three-party joint venture entity ultimately failed to take shape.

SoftBank leads development, supported by NVIDIA.

SB Energy, a SoftBank subsidiary, is leading the development of the project site. SB Energy held a groundbreaking ceremony for the campus in March, which was attended by SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son and U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright. The specific roles of OpenAI and NVIDIA were not previously disclosed.

NVIDIA has discussed providing credit support for the project rather than direct funding. By guaranteeing OpenAI's lease, NVIDIA will act as a de facto infrastructure financier to lock in chip customers.

Background and Scale of the Ohio Project

The Ohio project originated from an agreement between SB Energy and the Trump administration to redevelop the aforementioned former uranium enrichment site. In February, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced that as part of a new U.S.-Japan trade agreement, SB Energy would invest $33 billion to construct a 9.2-gigawatt natural gas power plant at the site. The U.S. government will own the plant, while SB Energy will be responsible for its operation.

The 10 gigawatts of data center capacity is approximately 4.5 times the generating capacity of the Hoover Dam, far exceeding similar projects. The timeline for the full completion of the entire Ohio facility has not yet been announced.

OpenAI's Financial Arrangements and Challenges

According to people familiar with the matter, OpenAI is required to pay at least tens of billions of dollars over a 20-year lease term. This figure excludes the cost of chips and servers. Based on these estimates, OpenAI would need approximately $350 billion more for the procurement of Nvidia AI chips.

OpenAI has discussed arranging financing for chip procurement, but it remains uncertain whether Nvidia or other parties will provide support through leasing or financing arrangements.

OpenAI is accelerating its efforts to secure the power and chips required for future AI systems while ensuring financial sustainability. The company has signed cloud leasing agreements with providers such as Oracle, Microsoft, and Amazon Web Services. On June 8, OpenAI confidentially filed for an IPO; its massive computing power expenditures are expected to be a core issue during the listing review.