Google takes over Crusoe's stalled Wyoming data centre, commits $17 billion
Crusoe said on 6 November 2026 that Google has acquired its unfinished south-eastern Wyoming data centre site; TechCrunch reported Google plans to invest $17 billion to build out the campus.
Crusoe, the Denver-based AI infrastructure developer, said on 6 November 2026 that Google has acquired its unfinished data centre site in south-eastern Wyoming, ending Crusoe's role in a project it had been developing with Blackstone-backed Tallgrass Energy. TechCrunch reported the same day that Google plans to invest $17 billion to build out the campus, after reportedly raising concerns about cost and construction timelines under Crusoe's management.
What changed hands
- Crusoe said the deal "marks the completion of Crusoe's engagement in pre-development work on the Wyoming project," which covered site selection, government approvals and a hybrid power strategy built with Tallgrass Energy combining fuel cells, grid power and natural gas turbines, with a long-term plan for carbon capture via Tallgrass's regional CO2 storage hub.
- Crusoe had announced the Wyoming project last year with plans to scale it to 10 gigawatts of power capacity, according to TechCrunch.
- Google did not disclose what it paid for the unfinished project, but said it would invest $17 billion to develop the campus, TechCrunch reported.
- Google had tried and failed to sign on as a customer for the project before taking over its development, according to TechCrunch.
- Crusoe co-founder and chief executive Chase Lochmiller said: "Crusoe is in the business of activating gigawatts for intelligence," adding the company has "more than 6 GW contracted and over 40 GW in our pipeline."
- Crusoe said it continues to separately develop a Google data centre campus under construction in Armstrong County near Amarillo, Texas.
Why it matters
The handover shows how hyperscalers are stepping in to directly control AI data centre projects when independent developers struggle to deliver them on cost and on schedule, a dynamic that is shaping how much outside capital — and whose balance sheet — underwrites the current AI build-out. For the Caspian region, where Azerbaijan has courted hyperscale data-centre investment for its Alat Free Zone as part of plans under the AI Strategy 2025–2028, the episode is a reminder that even well-financed developers can lose control of mega-projects to the cloud companies that ultimately need the capacity.
