SpaceX Outlines $74 Billion Texas and Arizona Data-Center Plans

SpaceX said Thursday it plans to spend about $24 billion on a data center in Texas’s Rio Grande Valley to train frontier AI models. The facility is being built on land the company owns and will generate its own electricity instead of drawing from the grid, SpaceX said. It has already created more than 3,000 construction jobs and is expected to support more than 500 permanent positions. The company also cited investments in local water and wastewater infrastructure and environmental cleanups.

The second proposal is a roughly $50 billion campus in Cochise County, Arizona. SpaceX said it is working with local electric cooperatives and pursuing approval, with the stated goal of reducing members’ electricity bills. The project is expected to bring about 5,500 construction jobs and 1,000 permanent jobs. SpaceX said it would use existing renewable-energy investments, strengthen regional grid infrastructure and could cut cooperative members’ bills by up to 20%.

The plans come after Democrats made widespread gains in the midterms, including in Texas, where SpaceX is headquartered. Texas Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa has criticized data centers. Wall Street analysts largely expect her to let projects that have received permits or begun construction continue.

Elon Musk spent more than $440 million supporting Republicans in the midterms, including more than $150 million for Republican Ken Paxton’s unsuccessful Texas Senate campaign. SpaceX said the Texas project offered “an extraordinary opportunity for South Texas,” adding that its full potential would require a “stable, competitive, and supportive policy environment.”