Fluidstack Starts $4 Billion Texas AI Campus Phase Planned for 1.5 GW
Fluidstack said it has begun construction on a $4 billion first phase of an AI data center campus in Cameron County, Texas, with plans to support up to 1.5 gigawatts of capacity as the state tightens oversight of the industry’s power and water use.
The company said in a Monday post that it expects the development to create more than 2,500 construction jobs and several hundred permanent positions. The announcement did not identify a customer or detail financing for the first phase.
The campus will occupy more than 1,100 acres near Rio Hondo, east of Valley International Airport and west of the Port of Harlingen. Fluidstack’s project website targets completion of the first phase by mid-2028, with further phases under consideration but unconfirmed.
The county’s authorization so far covers preliminary work. Cameron County said on September 10 that it had issued a worksite permit allowing activities such as land clearing, grading, utility installation and drainage infrastructure. Separate permits will be required before construction of the buildings can begin.
Fluidstack’s update coincided with a new statewide permitting restriction. Governor Greg Abbott on September 21 directed the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to halt permits sought by data centers pending completion of an Electric Reliability Council of Texas audit. His office said state agencies should not advance regulatory approvals until information needed to assess grid and water impacts is available.
The directive did not identify the Cameron County campus specifically or establish whether its existing site-work authorization would be affected. Fluidstack said it would participate in state utility and grid audits, but its announcement did not address the new permitting halt.
The company pledged to cover energy, infrastructure and water costs and said it had neither sought nor received local property tax abatements or county incentives. Cameron County separately confirmed it is providing no tax abatement.
“We’ll pay for the campus’s energy, infrastructure and water. No infrastructure or energy costs will pass to the community,” Fluidstack said in the update.
Fluidstack plans to recirculate cooling water in a closed loop, with replenishment after the initial fill limited to maintenance and repairs. East Rio Hondo Water Supply Corporation will supply that water. The company’s project website also says it is developing on-site generation to reduce demand on the ERCOT grid.
The development adds to Fluidstack’s expansion as an infrastructure provider for AI companies. Anthropic announced a $50 billion investment in US computing infrastructure in November 2025, including custom data centers being built with Fluidstack in Texas and New York.
