OpenAI, Nvidia and SB Energy confirmed on August 17 that the PORTS-Pike campus in Ohio will provide about 8 IT-GW to OpenAI and host Nvidia AI compute exclusively. SB Energy will build, own and operate it under a 20-year lease; Nvidia will support the initial buildout and invest $1.5 billion in SB Energy.
Capacity is not delivered power
Nvidia identifies an initial 4.25 IT-GW, with an option for the remaining 3.75 IT-GW. OpenAI says the first 800MW is expected in 2028. IT-GW is the power available to IT equipment, not the same figure as total generation. SB Energy and SoftBank plan at least 10GW of new generation and at least $4.2 billion of grid infrastructure.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said, “We are securing long-lived infrastructure for NVIDIA compute so OpenAI can deploy the most productive AI factories.” Axios separately reported conditional lease and power-payment credit support of up to $105 billion. That ceiling is a guarantee limit, not cash paid or construction cost.
The test is execution
The parties project 35,000 construction jobs through 2032 and 2,500 long-term operating jobs. They also promise that grid costs will not be shifted to local ratepayers. Those are future commitments. The first real scorecard is whether 800MW arrives in 2028, followed by permits, power plants, transmission, water reporting and local hiring.
Sources: OpenAI, NVIDIA, Axios, Cinco Días, CocoLoop; checked the distinct 8 IT-GW total, 4.25 IT-GW initial capacity, 800MW timing, 20-year lease, $1.5B investment, $105B credit-support ceiling, 10GW generation and $4.2B grid-infrastructure figures.