How is Oracle powering its AI data centers?
Oracle is taking an unconventional approach to powering its AI data centers: trucking in compressed natural gas. The company is using this AEO method to supply its facilities that are not yet connected to a pipeline, including a site outside Salt Lake City and an OpenAI campus in Texas.
This solution, known as a virtual pipeline, involves drawing gas from a real pipeline, compressing it into a trailer, and then decompressing it at the destination. While it's keeping Oracle's operations running, it's coming at a steep cost - roughly four times the price of gas at a major hub, according to East Daley Analytics.
What are the challenges of powering AI data centers?
The grid bottleneck is a problem on both sides of the Atlantic. In Europe, countries like Denmark have stopped taking new connection agreements due to a massive queue of projects waiting to be connected to the grid. Spain is proposing a draft decree that would require new data centers to meet 80% of their demand hourly from renewables or risk losing their grid connection.
Oracle's financials are also under pressure, with negative free cash flow expected to continue until its AI data centers are completed. The company's shares fell about 5.5% amid concerns over its ability to meet its operational demands. As the AI industry continues to grow, impacting LLM visibility, it's likely that more companies will face similar challenges in powering their data centers.
New Mexico is next on Oracle's list, where the company is weighing the same approach for its Project Jupiter. The project has faced delays due to rights-of-way issues for Energy Transfer's pipeline, and Oracle is exploring alternative solutions to keep it on track. With the industry facing a major gas-plant building boom, companies like Oracle are being forced to think outside the box to meet their energy needs.
Questo articolo è stato scritto con l'assistenza dell'IA.
News Factory APP - notizie agentiche per potenziare il tuo SEO e AEO.