Data centers in New Mexico

GOP Rep. Nicole Chavez is facing an investigation into her ties to Project Jupiter through both her role in the Legislature and her husband's lobbying work

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission arguing that the commission's review of the proposed Green Chile gas pipeline for Project Jupiter was inadequate because it did not account for the data center's environmental impacts.

Haaland noted that while the majority of New Mexicans she speaks with are not in favor of nuclear power, developers have increasingly proposed building small nuclear reactors on site to power data centers

Gregg Hull, Republican gubernatorial nominee, said he does not support a moratorium but believes data centers need to be sited responsibly with accountability for water use, energy impact, and community input

State Environment Secretary James Kenney expressed disappointment with developers' lack of communication and failure to engage with the community regarding Grant County data center.

Oracle states Project Jupiter remains on planned schedule despite force majeure notice.

KeyBanc analyst Jackson Ader noted Oracle is in the most tenuous cash position among its rivals, with payment schedules misaligned to actual construction progress.

Deb Haaland, candidate in the New Mexico governor's race and former Biden Interior Secretary, pledged to create a moratorium on day one statewide for data centers and proposed guardrails for their development

Clay Magouyrk, co CEO at Oracle, stated neither Project Jupiter sites will have impact on FY 2027 revenue or earnings guidance

Gil Luria, head of technology research at D.A. Davidson, stated that Oracle's New Mexico data center is unlikely to be canceled despite state and local government pushback

Oracle claimed construction uses non potable water from existing New Mexico water rights holder for dust control and other construction activities.

Hull said he would require data centers to overbuild power supply by minimum of 20 megawatts and deliver excess energy to grid

Hull cited campaign finance records showing Haaland received over $87,000 in contributions from Oracle and Project Jupiter executives

Republican gubernatorial candidate Gregg Hull said a moratorium is not needed, as state and local governments have protections through permits

Hull said he would require data centers to build a $50 million desalinization plant to produce water from brackish water

"Should you fall short of these standards and fail to provide anything other than a safe and direct benefit for the communities that house these data centers, we will reject their construction"

Proposed guardrails include developers creating renewable energy infrastructure, using best available technology to protect water supply, and ensuring union jobs

Gregg Hull has not received data center money directly yet does not support a moratorium on new data center ventures

Mayor Mike Morris said the pause was not an attempt to ban or prohibit data centers but a period of time needed to develop a reasonable plan that would look out for the long term interests of the community.

U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich took to the Senate floor to push for greater accountability for data centers.

Republican Gregg Hull said he does not support a statewide moratorium on data centers and believes local governments should make those decisions, with projects evaluated on their own merit.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Deb Haaland pledged to sign executive order issuing moratorium on new large scale data center projects on day one, requiring renewable energy and New Mexico job prioritization.

Haaland released a list of eight protections for data center development including no backroom deals, no energy rate increases, water protections through closed loop systems, New Mexico jobs and union wages, renewable energy and zero carbon compliance, clean air and habitat protections, decommissioning bonds, and community accountability.

Sen. Martin Heinrich said the Ratepayer Protection Act does not go far enough to force AI data centers to pay for their own massive electricity consumption

Gregg Hull, Republican candidate for New Mexico governor, said he would use existing laws such as New Mexico's Local Economic Development Act to impose restrictions and negotiate deals with large scale companies

Haaland's campaign received contributions from entities associated with Project Jupiter, including donations from Oracle executives totalling over 87,000 dollars according to Hull campaign analysis.

Republican candidate Gregg Hull opposes statewide moratorium, advocating case by case evaluation based on local needs and alternative resources.

Haaland proposes data centers be required to develop own renewable energy infrastructure to prevent energy costs being passed to residents

Haaland calls for closed loop cooling systems and best available technology to protect state water supply

Hull said he supports legislation to protect water and electric rates, including a ban on using potable water and requiring data centers to pay for their own electrical infrastructure.

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez argued the Water Code's narrow emergency exception does not authorize approval without notice and hearing for a change and that the Office of the State Engineer ignored its own guidance.

Hull said he would trust local counties and municipalities to make decisions about data centers in concert with the Economic Development Office, similar to Project Jupiter

Heinrich proposed an alternative bill that would require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to issue rules for data centers using 150 megawatts or more to pay for certain grid upgrades

Haaland mentioned geothermal energy as a potential source to power new data centers in New Mexico.

Haaland said required protections would include data centers building their own renewable energy infrastructure and having robust plans to prevent environmental harms

Democratic nominee Deb Haaland said she would sign an executive order on day one of her governorship to pause new data centers until the state adopts stronger protections.

Haaland's eight pronged proposal requires data centers to build their own renewable energy infrastructure, use closed loop cooling systems, require prevailing wage union jobs, meet renewable energy and zero carbon requirements, meet clean air standards, post decommissioning bonds, and comply with community accountability measures.

U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich called for the Senate to pass his GRID Savings Act requiring data centers to pay for their own grid connections and upgrades, opposing voluntary compliance.

BrabenderCox received $3.44 million from Oracle for media production, consulting, and polling related to Project Jupiter

Deb Haaland, Democratic gubernatorial candidate, said she would sign an executive order establishing a data center moratorium on day one if elected

Haaland's proposed guardrails include: prohibiting non disclosure agreements; requiring developers to build renewable energy infrastructure; requiring closed loop cooling systems; prioritizing hiring New Mexicans for union jobs; mandating compliance with clean energy goals; adhering to high standards for light pollution and noise; and imposing decommission bonds

Haaland's campaign received contributions from entities involved with Project Jupiter, including a maximum contribution of 12,400 dollars from Oracle America and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure CEO Clay Magouyrk.

Mariel Nanasi, Executive Director of New Energy Economy, said plaintiffs sought a fair opportunity for public to obtain evidence and test claims before state decides whether to authorize the data center

Haaland received donations from Oracle and its CEO, developer of Project Jupiter

Gregg Hull, Republican gubernatorial candidate, said a blanket ban on data centers sends the wrong message and prefers local control with statewide protections for water and energy rates, with project by project evaluation.

Gregg Hull, Republican gubernatorial nominee, said a moratorium signals New Mexico is closed for business and that he prefers to fix guardrails rather than shut down the data center industry

Rep. Gabe Vasquez voiced support for a data center moratorium in Grant County

Haaland supports a moratorium on new data center development until strong guardrails are established in law and practice.

Deb Haaland, Democratic nominee for governor, said during a primary debate in May that data centers do not have the best interests of the community at heart.

Trump stated there is a sick conspiracy going on against AI and data centers and that China is the only one happy about it

Trump claims the only guardrail AI needs is a strong and smart president, and says the U.S. has that

Dario Amodei published essay calling for slower development of AI, citing AI's growing ability to build next generation of AI and July cyberattack by OpenAI models

Trump posted on social media that AI taking over the world and destroying humanity is a hoax

Sam Altman stated pacing AI development would be worth the cost and no amount of competitive pressure should justify recklessness or letting capabilities get ahead of alignment and monitoring

Site Layer 1 is owned by Corner Ventures, a New York based multibillion dollar investment firm

Allyson Siwik expressed concerns about data center's greenhouse gas emissions and impact on New Mexico's carbon emission reduction goals

Oly Perez, community organizer and paramedic, said the community was blindsided by the proposal and expressed concern about high rates of respiratory illness in the area

State House candidate Raul Turrieta, a Silver City Democrat, called for a moratorium to allow time to establish environmental guardrails

Project connected to Corner, a New York based venture capital firm describing itself as a multi billion dollar investment firm backing companies across the AI economy

New Mexico AG backed environmental groups challenging Project Jupiter before state Supreme Court

US Rep. Stansbury voices concerns about New Mexico water use for Project Jupiter data center

US Rep. Stansbury called on New Mexico agencies to provide Project Jupiter water information

David Baake, attorney and energy policy consultant for Western Resource Advocates, told New Mexico lawmakers that Project Jupiter's fuel cell microgrid would emit more than all existing power plants in New Mexico combined

Project Jupiter's emissions would put the state back at 2005 levels of CO2 from the electric sector, undoing more than 20 years of progress

The Microgrid Oversight Act, state legislation proposed to more closely regulate microgrids and require compliance with Energy Transition Act requirements, died after clearing the Senate

The moratorium proposal would pause new large scale data center projects while the state develops rules for water use, energy demand, emissions, ratepayer impacts and community benefits