Fermi Signs First Anchor Lease and Names a Chief Executive
The TensorWave turnkey contract covers 222 megawatts of Phase One power and about $6.5 billion of revenue over 15 years.
Fermi Inc. (FRMI), a developer of private electric grids for AI compute, said it had executed the five-objective 90-day plan it set in May, signing its first binding customer, naming a chief executive, adding a power alliance, landing turbines, and raising convertible capital.
The company signed a 15-year turnkey binding lease with TensorWave, a neocloud provider, to become the first customer at the Project Matador campus in the Texas Panhandle. Phase one includes 222 megawatts of total facility power, with total revenue of approximately $6.5 billion over the life of the contract. The agreement also includes two expansion options for TensorWave to triple the size of its footprint on the site.
In May, Fermi had listed securing a binding tenant agreement among its 90-day objectives, alongside hiring a new chief executive, exploring strategic partnerships, and delivering power. Chairman Marius Haas said the team delivered on all five.
The board appointed Lee McIntire as chief executive officer to lead the transition from development into construction and first power. McIntire, an independent director since September 2025, has more than 40 years of experience at Bechtel, CH2M Hill, and TerraPower.
On August 11, Fermi announced a build-own-operate-transfer strategic alliance with Hillcore Energy Capital Corporation for approximately 2.6 gigawatts of incremental power generation at Project Matador. The framework would double planned on-site generation to 4.8 gigawatts within about 30 months when combined with Fermi’s own program. Hillcore and its partners would finance, construct, own, and operate the facility under a long-term ground sublease, with Fermi committing no capital and issuing no debt for the plant. First power of about 350 megawatts is targeted within 24 months of notice to proceed. Fermi will serve as anchor offtaker under a 20-year power-purchase agreement and holds an option to acquire the facility at fair market value after year 10.
Three Siemens SGT6-5000F turbines arrived at the Port of Houston in July, bringing Fermi’s landed power assets to 1.5 gigawatts. The prior quarter had reported securing more than 2 gigawatts of total power generation across owned and contracted assets. Phase one comprises six Siemens SGT-800 turbines capable of nearly 300 megawatts; bathtub excavation is complete for all six power islands, and Primoris is engaged on balance-of-plant work. TSK is delivering early works and fast-start engineering on the Phase Two units.
Fermi is targeting about 200 megawatts of initial commercial power over the next six months and about 1.5 gigawatts over the next 18 to 24 months, excluding the Hillcore alliance and subject to binding customer agreements and approvals. The site, with approximately 8,400 acres secured or under long-term lease and more than $1.5 billion invested in buildout to date, is described as ready to shift to vertical construction on customer timelines.
After quarter end, the company issued more than $431 million of 5.00% Convertible Senior Notes due 2031, including the full exercise of an initial purchasers’ option for an additional $56.3 million. Net proceeds were $416.8 million, before about $34.5 million of capped-call costs. The initial conversion price is about $9.52 a share. Capped-call transactions eliminate dilution up to an effective strike of $14.64 a share, a 100% premium to the July 9, 2026 closing price. The notes carry no scheduled amortization and no financial maintenance covenants.
For the three months ended June 30, 2026, Fermi reported a net loss of $25.8 million, or $0.04 a share. General and administrative expenses were $26.8 million. The company remains pre-revenue and in its development phase, with spending tracking buildout rather than operations.
Cash and restricted cash on hand was $91.7 million as of June 30, 2026, down from $408.5 million of cash and cash equivalents at December 31, 2025. Property, plant, and equipment, net rose to $1.55 billion from $935.3 million at year-end 2025 after $185.0 million of capital invested in the quarter. Debt, net increased to $520.1 million from $109.8 million at December 31, 2025, reflecting a $98.8 million net increase in borrowings under equipment financing facilities.
The site is now ready to shift to vertical construction on customer timelines, with the supply chain secured and EPC relationships in place.