Nvidia Puts $1.5B Into SB Energy for OpenAI Data Center
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- Nvidia announced a $1.5 billion investment in SB Energy, locking in its position as the sole supplier of compute infrastructure at OpenAI's Ports-Pike data center near Cincinnati, Ohio.
- Nvidia also committed up to $105 billion in credit to help build the facility, which could scale from an initial 4.25 gigawatts to 8 gigawatts, according to SEC filings.
- SB Energy will construct a 9.2 gigawatt natural gas power plant on the site, land owned by the U.S. Department of Energy that previously enriched uranium for the U.S. nuclear arsenal and Navy submarines.
- The natural gas power plant is expected to cost $33 billion, reflecting a 66% rise in natural gas plant construction costs over the past two years, per BloombergNEF.
- SoftBank had previously held $5.8 billion worth of Nvidia stock, which it sold in November to help fund other AI investments.
- Natural gas prices could triple in some parts of the country once the power plant and other facilities compete with export markets for supply.
Why it matters: Nvidia is no longer just selling chips into the AI buildout — it's underwriting it: $1.5 billion in equity plus up to $105 billion in credit on a single Ohio site whose $33 billion gas plant faces input costs that have surged 66% in two years and could triple by completion, exposing Nvidia to utility-scale risk alongside its semiconductor margins.
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