Oracle invokes force majeure to postpone payments on New Mexico data center project
Oracle has sent a force-majeure notice to developer Blue Owl to defer payments for its Project Jupiter data center in New Mexico, citing possible cost overruns.
The cloud giant notified Blue Owl that it may delay payments for the Project Jupiter data center if the venture stalls or misses its 2028 launch target. The move is intended to shield Oracle from unexpected expenses rather than abandon its role as the primary tenant. The announcement caused Oracle’s shares to slip about 4% in pre-market trading. Sources familiar with the matter provided the details, though one outlet could not independently verify them. Neither Oracle nor Blue Owl commented at the time.
Why it matters
Oracle's payment delay could affect the timeline and financing of a major data-center build in New Mexico.
How this story developed
- Aug 4 Texas governor pauses new data center approvals pending power grid audit
- Aug 28 New York and Texas each announced a pause on new hyperscale data centres.
- Aug 30 Judge Lesa Gelb ruled that Salem Township’s planning commission violated Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act by excluding residents from a data‑center ordinance meeting.
- Aug 30 Austin’s city council is set to vote on a resolution that would create a specific land‑use category and review process for large AI data centers.
- Aug 31 President Trump posted on Truth Social that communities rejecting AI data‑center projects will become “backwards and poor.”
- Sep 1 Nvidia announced quarterly revenue of $96.2 billion, surpassing analyst forecasts.
- Sep 2 At a virtual G‑20 technology ministers’ session, Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk called for accelerated AI data‑center construction and additional power capacity.
- Sep 2 Trump labeled communities that reject data‑center projects “backwards and poor” and warned that China would welcome such resistance.
- Sep 4 The article warns that Republican campaigns are blaming China for opposition to AI data centers, while voters across party lines are increasingly hostile to the technology.
- Sep 12 The House is set to debate the Ratepayer Protection Act, a measure aimed at easing power costs for data centers and appealing to voters concerned about AI-driven utility bills. In the Senate, a crypto market-structure proposal is expected to face a tough vote amid ethics disputes involving Donald Trump, while the bipartisan Protect College Sports Act looks likely to advance with strong backing from donors. Lawmakers are racing to pass these initiatives before a three-week Senate session ends and the midterm elections arrive.
- Sep 13 Jon Husted introduced legislation to shield consumers from rising electricity bills linked to data‑center demand.
- Sep 15 The Global Dialogue on AI Governance has now highlighted AI’s impact on voter registration and results management.
- Sep 17 A bipartisan House bill to shift data‑center infrastructure and energy costs to tech firms has been introduced.
- Sep 21 Senator John Fetterman publicly endorsed President Trump’s data‑center push, aligning with the administration despite broad opposition.
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