OpenAI joins massive Ohio data center project at former nuclear enrichment site
OpenAI is joining a massive data center project planned for the former Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in southern Ohio, committing to use approximately 8 gigawatts of power and cover its own energy and infrastructure costs.
The artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT announced Monday that it will join SB Energy, Nvidia and the U.S. Department of Energy in developing the PORTS-Pike Technology Data Center in Pike County.
The announcement confirms OpenAI’s involvement after reports last month that the company was in advanced discussions to lease the planned 10-gigawatt campus.
“Pike County helped power America’s industrial growth in the 20th century and now, with this project, it has another opportunity to play a leading role in the next era of American industrialization,” OpenAI said, according to WOSU.
The company said it will pay its own energy and infrastructure costs, including upgrades such as new transmission lines, as data center development faces increasing scrutiny in Ohio over its effects on the electric grid and utility bills.
OpenAI also said the facility will use a closed-loop, air-cooled water system that recirculates water rather than relying on cooling towers that continuously consume water. The company said it will publicly report the facility’s water usage once it becomes operational.
Once the cooling system is filled, OpenAI said its ongoing water use is expected to be comparable to that of an office building supporting a similar number of people.
The site is expected to be largely powered by the existing electric grid. An initial 800-megawatt data center, scheduled for completion in 2028, will, however, rely largely on existing AEP infrastructure, according to WOSU.
Ohio.News previously reported on the Pike County development when SB Energy and federal officials announced plans for billions of dollars in new energy infrastructure earlier this year. At full build-out, the project is expected to reach approximately 10 gigawatts, including 9.2 gigawatts of new on-site natural gas generation.
OpenAI’s announcement also follows reports that Nvidia was considering providing approximately $250 billion in financing guarantees to help the company lease the Ohio campus and finance debt associated with the project.
In July, it was reported that the proposed guarantee would not cover Nvidia’s semiconductor chips. Nvidia was also reportedly discussing financing OpenAI’s chip purchases, which could total up to $350 billion.
Those financing arrangements were reported as being under discussion and have not been publicly announced as finalized. Nvidia is now identified alongside OpenAI, SB Energy and the Energy Department as a participant in the Pike County venture.
The development is expected to take approximately six years to build. Officials have estimated it could support roughly 35,000 construction jobs, while about 2,500 workers would remain to operate the facilities after construction.
The site housed the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant, which enriched uranium from 1954 until 2001 for the nation’s nuclear weapons program and commercial nuclear reactors.
The project comes amid growing scrutiny of data center development across Ohio over electricity costs, water consumption, environmental effects and the infrastructure required to serve the facilities.
Residents in Hilliard, for example, raised concerns earlier this year about air pollution from emergency generators at an Amazon data center. Other Ohio communities and state lawmakers have questioned whether residential utility customers could bear costs associated with the rapid expansion of large data centers.
OpenAI said the initial 800-megawatt portion of the Pike County development is expected to be completed in 2028.
