Project Jupiter's First Building Tops Out in New Mexico

Contractors have placed the final structural beam on the first 855,000-square-foot (79,432 sqm) building at Project Jupiter, the Oracle- and Stack-backed data center campus in Doña Ana County, New Mexico. Clayco and Kiewit New Mexico Co. announced the topping out this week, completing the facility's primary structural framework roughly five months after the project broke ground in October 2025.

What has been built so far?

Oracle and Stack selected a Clayco-Kiewit joint venture as general contractors for the first portion of the campus. That phase covers 855,000 square feet across the 1,400-acre site announced last year. The full build-out plan calls for:

• Four data center buildings
• Micro-grid facilities
• Natural gas power plants
• A battery storage center
• A desalination plant

At full build-out, the site could reach 2.5GW of capacity, though the project has reportedly faced challenges securing a natural gas connection. Oracle will occupy the campus once construction finishes and will use it to host AI infrastructure for OpenAI.

How will the campus handle water and power?

The companies stated that no public drinking water will be used for data center cooling or fuel-cell operations. The initial, one-time fill of the site's four closed-loop, non-evaporative cooling systems will draw on non-potable well water, purchased under contract from an existing New Mexico water-rights holder. Bloom Energy fuel cells will power a campus microgrid and will also rely on non-potable water.

Ryan McGuire, Clayco's president of construction and compute, framed the milestone in terms of output and resource management. "As the need for advanced technological facilities grows, so does Clayco's commitment to delivering high-quality data center projects that not only support billions in community investments and the creation of thousands of skilled jobs, but that utilize on-site power generation and sustainable water technologies to minimize impacts to local electric grids and water systems," McGuire said.

What did the partners say?

Mike Casey, COO of Stack Infrastructure, credited coordination across the building team. "Reaching this milestone reflects the extraordinary coordination and commitment of the teams bringing Project Jupiter to life," Casey said. "Project Jupiter demonstrates how infrastructure at this scale can advance technological innovation while supporting local jobs, strengthening the regional economy, and responsibly managing energy and water resources."

Tyler Nordquist, SVP of Kiewit New Mexico Co., pointed to delivery and safety. "Projects of this scale are built through trust, collaboration, and an unwavering commitment to safety," Nordquist said.

Mahesh Thiagarajan, EVP of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, addressed ratepayer and grid concerns directly: "Together with our partners, we are building responsibly—investing in the energy infrastructure needed to protect local ratepayers and grid reliability, using closed-loop cooling systems designed to significantly reduce water consumption, and creating meaningful career opportunities and lasting economic value for Doña Ana County."

Clayco is a real estate development and construction firm; Kiewit is a North American construction and engineering organization. Oracle, for its part, tied the project to national demand. Thiagarajan said Oracle is building Project Jupiter "to meet the growing nationwide customer demand for secure, reliable AI infrastructure."

The first building now stands framed on a site designed for four; the remaining question is the gas connection.