Nvidia Invests $1.5B in SB Energy, Backs OpenAI Ohio Data Centre

Nvidia is investing $1.5 billion in SB Energy as the data centre and energy developer builds a massive Ohio computing campus for OpenAI. The deal also makes Nvidia the exclusive supplier of AI compute infrastructure for the PORTS-Pike project.

Investors including SoftBank and OpenAI back SB Energy. The project is expected to begin with 4.25 gigawatts of IT capacity and could eventually scale to 8 gigawatts for OpenAI.

Nvidia backs OpenAI’s Ohio data centre

Alongside its equity investment, Nvidia has agreed to provide financial guarantees to support the development of the first phase. The potential commitment could reach up to $105 billion as infrastructure is built and Nvidia systems are deployed on site.

The arrangement strengthens Nvidia’s role beyond supplying chips. By supporting financing for large AI infrastructure projects, the company can also secure demand for its computing systems as developers race to add capacity to train and run AI models.

PORTS-Pike is being developed near Piketon, Ohio, on land associated with the former Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant. The federal site was previously used to enrich uranium for U.S. defence and nuclear energy programs.

Power project adds to the investment

SB Energy also plans to build substantial power generation capacity to support the computing campus. The project includes plans for a 9.2-gigawatt natural gas power facility, with the source article putting its estimated cost at about $33 billion.

The scale of the energy investment comes as construction costs for new U.S. natural gas plants have risen sharply. BloombergNEF research found that average costs for combined-cycle gas plants increased by 66% between 2023 and 2025, while development timelines lengthened.

The combination of Nvidia’s investment, financing support and exclusive compute agreement makes PORTS-Pike another example of the enormous capital requirements behind new AI infrastructure. For SB Energy, the project combines large-scale computing with dedicated power generation, while OpenAI gains access to a planned multigigawatt expansion of its computing capacity.