Geothermal

Firm geothermal power · Enhanced geothermal and utility tariffs · Flagship: Fervo Cape Station, Utah

Geothermal is firm, carbon-free power that runs around the clock, which is what AI campuses want, but only where the rock is hot. Fervo's Cape Station in Utah began commercial operation in September 2026, and Google has contracted 396 MW from it, with an option on about 600 MW more.

Fervo Cape Station build-out in Utah, from 33 MW in commercial operation in September 2026 to 100 MW by January 2027, 500 MW in 2028 and a 1.1 GW target by 2030, against about 900 MW contracted, including Google's 396 MW FERVO CAPE STATION, BEAVER COUNTY, UTAH, MW 0 400 800 1,200 33SEP 2026Operating 100JAN 2027Phase 1 5002028Phase 2 built 1,1002030Fervo target PERMITS ALLOWUp to 2 GW CONTRACTED AT CAPE STATION, ABOUT 900 MW Google 396 SCE 320 Others 153 Shell 31 MW; Clean Power Alliance and others make up the rest. GOOGLE OPTION: ~600 MW MORE BY JUNE 2030, FOR A POSSIBLE UTAH DATA CENTER PHASE 2 COST: ~$5,500/KW; FERVO TARGET $3,000/KW
Cape Station now
33 MW operating
2028
500 MW
Contracted
About 900 MW
Google
396 MW + option
Hub
Energy

Cape Station

The First Utility-Scale Enhanced Geothermal Plant

  • First power: Cape Station synced to the grid on September 24, 2026, and Fervo declared commercial operation of its first 33 MW unit on September 30, the first utility-scale enhanced geothermal system to do so.
  • Phases: two more 33 MW units by January 2027 complete the 100 MW first phase; a 400 MW second phase of eight 50 MW units is under construction for 2028. Fervo targets 1.1 GW by 2030, and its permits allow 2 GW.
  • Drilling: its Sawtooth 7 well reached about 19,500 feet into rock near 460°F in 21 days, a company record, using oil-and-gas horizontal drilling.
  • Buyers: about 900 MW is contracted, including Southern California Edison (320 MW), Shell (31 MW) and Google, whose 396 MW deal (September 2026) is the largest enhanced geothermal contract yet, with an option for about 600 MW more by June 2030 for a possible Utah data center.
  • Money: Fervo listed on Nasdaq in May 2026, raising about $2.2B; the second phase costs about $5,500/kW against a long-term target of $3,000/kW.

Other deals

Geothermal Deals for Data Centers

Geothermal contracts tied to data centers
DealMWStatus
Ormat and GoogleNevada, under NV Energy's Clean Transition TariffUp to 150Plants online 2028-2030; state approval expected late 2026
Fervo Corsac Station and GoogleNevada, NV Energy tariff115Pre-construction; tariff approved May 2025
Sage Geosystems and MetaEast of the Rockies, site not chosenUp to 150First phase targeted 2027; no 2026 update
XGS Energy and MetaNew Mexico, PNM grid150Both phases by 2030
Ormat and SwitchSalt Wells, near Fallon, NVAbout 1320 years from 2030; Ormat's first data center contract
Quaise Energy, Project ObsidianNewberry area, Oregon50, scaling to 250Superhot rock; first power by 2030; no data center buyer confirmed
Microsoft and Contact EnergyTe Huka 3, New Zealand51.4Signed 2022
Microsoft and G42, OlkariaKenya100 first, 1 GW goalStalled: Kenya refused capacity payments (2026)
MSB Matrix campusSulphur Springs, TX1,200 geothermal claimed, with 800 MW of Bloom fuel cellsCompany claim; Phase 1 listed as canceled

The MSB Matrix campus in Hopkins County, Texas, claimed 800 MW of Bloom fuel cells followed by a 1,200 MW geothermal microgrid. No geothermal developer is named, East Texas lacks the hot rock found in the Great Basin, and Cleanview lists its first phase as canceled.

Why it fits

Firm Power, but Only Where the Rock Is Hot

  • Firm output: geothermal runs around the clock; new plants are designed for capacity factors above 90%.
  • Location: the best resource is in the Great Basin, Utah and Nevada, so data centers buy through utility tariffs such as NV Energy's Clean Transition Tariff or Utah's direct-to-load path, or move to the resource. Sage and Quaise aim to widen the map.
  • Policy: the July 2025 tax law kept full investment and production tax credits for geothermal projects that start construction by 2033, long after wind and solar lose theirs.

Record

Dataset Record

Dataset
Geothermal supply contracted by data center companies
Sources
Fervo Energy, SEC filings, Google, Ormat, Meta, NV Energy, Cleanview, ThinkGeoEnergy, Power Engineering, Latitude Media, Utility Dive, DatacenterDynamics
Last verified
October 2026