Market Brief
North American GPU Infrastructure Brief
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Bottom line: The biggest immediate commercial change is TVA’s new large-load charge. Most other developments add substantial future capacity, but none represents confirmed near-term, uncommitted GPU colocation inventory.
1. TVA’s new tariff materially increases entry costs above 5 MW
- Change: PowerCompute disclosed that new or expanded data-center loads in TVA territory face an approximately $1.5 million/MW Capacity Commitment Rider above the first 5 MW, with a 2,000 MW FY2027 cohort allocated first-come, first-served. Its existing Columbus, Mississippi site was grandfathered when it expanded from 8.5 MW to 11 MW. SEC disclosure
- Status: The 11 MW PowerCompute site is interconnected and operating. The tariff figure comes from the company’s SEC-filed disclosure; I did not locate a directly accessible TVA tariff confirming every application detail.
- Client implication: A new 11 MW requirement could theoretically incur about $9 million on the 6 MW above the threshold, before energy, demand, colo rent, construction or taxes. Treat that calculation as indicative until the serving utility confirms it.
- Brokerage move: For every TVA-region proposal, require written confirmation of grandfathering, remaining cohort allocation, payment timing, refundability and whether staged deployments are aggregated.
2. Serverfarm’s first 108 MW Arkansas building reached structural top-out
- Change: ARK1 in Clarksville has topped out. Serverfarm lists 108 MW of building capacity, 300,000 square feet, four fiber entrances and colocation use; the four-building plan totals 432 MW. DCD
- Status: Under construction—not ready for service. No firm RFS date, available-versus-preleased MW or pricing was disclosed.
- Cooling: The site specifies ACC waterless/closed-loop cooling and PUE of 1.3 or lower, but does not establish direct-to-chip CDU support, supported rack density or GB300 qualification. Serverfarm
- Client implication: This is the week’s clearest future wholesale-colocation lead for 10+ MW deployments, but “108 MW building capacity” should not yet be represented as critical IT capacity or saleable inventory.
3. TeraWulf doubled contracted utility power at Muskie to 1 GW
- Change: An amended Kentucky Power/AEP agreement raises Muskie’s contracted power from 500 MW to 1 GW. The first 500 MW is targeted to begin ramping in 2028; the second 500 MW moved forward from 2030 to 2029. A 765/345 kV substation is planned. SEC disclosure
- Status: Contracted future utility capacity—not energized capacity. The second phase remains subject to Kentucky PSC approval and the utility construction schedule. No tenant, prelease, rack density or commercial pricing was disclosed.
- Client implication: Potential fit for hyperscale or 100+ MW AI campuses, but too early for near-term 1–5 MW deployments. Ask whether smaller phases will be marketed and whether published MW is utility input or tenant critical IT.
4. Google is funding 890 MW of incremental nuclear generation in PJM
- Change: Google and Constellation signed a 20-year PPA supporting 890 MW of nuclear uprates across 11 units in Illinois, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, with the first increment expected in 2028. A separate 15-year agreement supports 2,700 MW of existing fleet generation. Constellation
- Status: Planned grid generation—not dedicated data-center capacity or a completed interconnection.
- Client implication: Positive long-term supply signal, but Google-backed procurement reinforces that large customers increasingly need to sponsor generation, accept curtailment/load shaping, or bring credible power strategies to PJM utilities. It does not improve 2026–27 colo availability.
5. AWS disclosed the scale and phasing of Homer City
- Change: AWS’s preliminary plan covers 36 two-story data-center buildings across six Pennsylvania sites. Construction is proposed in four phases from December 2026 through June 2036, supported by Homer City’s planned approximately 4.4–4.5 GW gas-generation complex. DCD
- Status: Preliminary development plan—not approved, energized or third-party colo inventory. Critical IT MW and cooling architecture were not disclosed.
- Client implication: Another sign that Pennsylvania is becoming a power-led AI market, but the campus currently looks principally captive to AWS rather than brokerable capacity.