MARA Pursues 2-Gigawatt AI Campus in Texas; Shares Jump 14%

MARA Holdings is moving to build a large artificial intelligence infrastructure project in Texas.

The company said July 9 it signed an agreement with HIF USA to acquire a 1,200-acre powered site in the state. The site is slated to be developed into a data center capable of supporting both high-performance computing and Bitcoin mining.

MARA said the site could secure as much as 2 gigawatts of grid capacity. Subject to approval from Texas grid operators and other conditions, the company projects it can secure 1 gigawatt by October 2027 and as much as 2 gigawatts by the second quarter of 2028.

The deal is structured as milestone-based payments of up to $600 million. The payments will be made in stages tied to regulatory approvals, land acquisition, site access rights and the securing of data center tenants. HIF will retain a minority stake in the data center even after MARA secures tenants.

Once the new Texas data center is fully operational, MARA's total power capacity will increase to 4.8 gigawatts, nearly double its current level. Chief Executive Officer Fred Thiel said sites with access to reliable, scalable power will become increasingly valuable.

The market reacted immediately. MARA shares surged about 14% in early trading from the previous close.