Investment bank Goldman Sachs (GS) and real estate advisory Newmark Group (NMRK) are working together to raise both equity and credit for the development of private AI power sites in Texas, according to a Tuesday media report.
The initial funding round is targeted to reach several “hundreds of millions of dollars,” with additional financing planned as the project expands, said Philip Krim, CEO of Montauk Capital, which incubated developer GridFree AI.
The project is focused on building modular natural gas-fired generation serving data centers across south Dallas, GridFree AI told Bloomberg. Newmark (NMRK) has also been picked to serve as the sole marketer and advisor for the South Dallas One data hub.
With land secured for two of the three locations, GridFree AI added, initial power can be delivered in less than 24 months after a lease is signed. Each site is planned for about 1.5 gigawatts, using modular 100-megawatt units powered by 10 gas turbines for continuous operation, plus two backup turbines.
The move comes amid a broader shift on Wall Street toward financing the power and data capacity needed to support AI growth. Meanwhile, Blackstone’s (BX) Australian data center firm AirTrunk was said to be exploring a potential real estate investment trust initial public offering in Singapore.
Neither Goldman Sachs (GS) nor Newmark Group (NMRK) immediately responded to Seeking Alpha’s request for comment.