New Era Locks 207 MW of TCDC Phase 1 Power

The Tip Desk · November 12, 2026 · 3 min read

The developer posted $187 million of cash at Oct. 31 and is in advanced talks on a Phase 1 lease under a non-binding letter of intent.

New Era Energy & Digital (NUAI), a developer of next-generation digital infrastructure and integrated power assets, said it had contracted up to 207 MW of firm power for Phase 1 of its Texas Critical Data Centers project and posted the required cash collateral, with power availability expected in the third quarter of 2027.

The company, which is developing large-scale data centers across energy-rich U.S. markets to support AI training and inference workloads, executed a 20-year power purchase agreement with Luminant, ET Services Company, LLC, an affiliate of Vistra Corp, for a minimum of 200 MW and up to 207 MW of firm power. Initial ready-for-service is targeted for the fourth quarter of 2027.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Charlie Nelson said the company’s focus is on advanced negotiations for the Phase 1 lease and putting financing and delivery arrangements in place. New Era said it is in advanced negotiations on Phase 1 lease documentation under a non-binding letter of intent covering Phases 1 and 2 with the same prospective tenant.

Site preparation is underway. An additional 99 acres are under contract alongside the existing 493 acres owned at the Permian Basin site, which the company describes as having anticipated capacity scaling to over 1 GW over time.

Phase 1 uses an existing registered, behind-the-meter private use network outside the Electric Reliability Council of Texas’ Batch Zero process. Phase 2 plans add new on-site generation to serve additional demand directly. The company said these arrangements are designed to avoid passing additional transmission costs on to other Texas ratepayers. TCDC’s design prioritizes closed-loop cooling to limit water consumption, and the company is evaluating reuse of water produced by Permian Basin oil and gas operations for cooling.

New Era completed a $64 million private investment in public equity to repay Macquarie borrowings used to fund a portion of the Phase 1 PPA cash collateral and to support TCDC leasing and development. At October 31, 2026, total cash was $187 million, comprising $49 million of unrestricted cash and $138 million of restricted cash, including collateral supporting the PPA letter of credit. Outstanding debt at that date was $20 million and was cash collateralized. The company retained the option for up to $200 million of post-lease financing under the Macquarie facility, subject to applicable financing conditions.

Phase 2 plans include approximately 550 MW of new behind-the-meter generation with Thunderhead Energy Solutions, with the air permit application filed. Phase 3 remains in design.

Nelson said responsible development has guided the company’s approach, including designing power arrangements to avoid additional transmission costs for ratepayers, using water responsibly and giving local communities a voice. The company said it is continuing direct engagement with local officials, businesses and community organizations in Odessa and Ector County, alongside efforts to support local employment and work with local suppliers and contractors.

The company said its strategy is to combine large-acreage sites with flexible power solutions, including behind-the-meter power, using a modular, phased data center deployment model to accelerate time-to-power for hyperscale, enterprise and edge operators.

The update covered the quarter ended September 30, 2026. New Era said it is developing large-scale data centers across energy-rich U.S. markets to support AI training and inference workloads, with Texas Critical Data Centers as its flagship project.