Proposed data hub near Laredo would run on its own power — not the grid

A Houston-based developer is proposing one of the largest energy-backed data center projects in Texas — a 5-gigawatt, behind-the-meter campus near Laredo designed to operate largely outside the state’s electric grid.

Energy Abundance Development Corporation announced plans for “Data City, Texas,” a 50,000-acre project that would combine wind, solar, battery storage, natural gas, and hydrogen to power large-scale data centers tied to artificial intelligence workloads.

“Data City is a world-class infrastructure project, pioneering a new behind-the-meter approach,” Brian Maxwell, founder and CEO of Energy Abundance Development Corporation, said in a statement. “It will help America win the AI race while demonstrating how to achieve 24/7 green power with hydrogen and salt cavern storage.”

A grid workaround

The project is designed to operate “fully islanded” from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, meaning it would generate and manage its own electricity rather than rely on the state grid.

That approach reflects a growing challenge for hyperscale data centers: securing large amounts of reliable power as electricity demand rises and transmission constraints tighten.

Instead of competing for grid capacity, Data City would generate power on-site using a mix of resources — including natural gas in early phases, with plans to transition to green hydrogen stored in nearby salt dome formations.

The company said the site would ultimately be supported by a 2-terawatt-hour hydrogen storage system tied to its broader “Hydrogen City” concept.

Built for AI demand

The campus is expected to be built in phases, beginning with 300 megawatts of capacity and roughly 1 million square feet of data center space targeted for 2026.

At full buildout, the project could reach 5 gigawatts of power capacity and more than 15 million square feet of leasable space.

Energy Abundance said the infrastructure is being designed for high-density computing, including direct-to-chip liquid cooling systems capable of supporting next-generation processors such as those developed by NVIDIA.

Industry forecasts underscore the scale of demand. According to McKinsey & Company, global data center power demand could reach 298 gigawatts by 2030 — more than triple current levels.

Energy as the bottleneck

Executives framed energy availability — not land or capital — as the primary constraint for new data center development.

“Data City solves hyperscalers’ biggest hurdle: securing massive low-cost power quickly,” Maxwell said. “Building behind-the-meter is the path to energy abundance.”

The model reflects a broader shift toward co-locating power generation with data infrastructure, particularly for AI-driven workloads that require continuous, high-volume electricity.