A startup co-founded by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is partnering with Texas Pacific Land Corporation (TPL) to develop large-scale data centers in West Texas. Bolt Data & Energy announced it has secured $150 million in capital and an additional $50 million investment from TPL, according to a joint press release issued Wednesday.
The agreement gives TPL an equity stake, warrants, and a right of first refusal to supply water for Bolt’s projects and related infrastructure. Bolt is seeking commercial partners and anchor tenants to establish significant data hubs on land controlled by TPL.
“TPL will receive an equity stake, warrants and a right of first refusal to supply water to Bolt-affiliated projects and related infrastructure,” the companies said in their statement. “Bolt, meanwhile, is lining up commercial partners and anchor tenants to build massive data hubs on TPL-controlled land.”
Texas Pacific Land has evolved from its origins as a land trust into a publicly traded company valued at nearly $40 billion after its stock tripled this year. The company owns approximately 882,000 acres in the Permian Basin region of Texas.
Bolt Data & Energy aims to differentiate itself from traditional data center developers by integrating power generation—initially from natural gas and renewables—with future plans for nuclear energy. This approach seeks to reduce the time between demand for AI computing resources and their delivery.
West Texas is becoming increasingly attractive for real estate and infrastructure development due to low natural gas prices, abundant land, and fewer regulatory barriers compared to coastal regions. Major technology firms such as Alphabet, Microsoft, and Amazon are reportedly exploring opportunities in the area because of its reliable access to low-cost electricity needed for AI workloads.
TPL’s business model relies on monetizing its extensive land holdings through royalties, surface leases, easements, permits for pipelines, utilities, and industrial uses rather than direct oil or gas extraction. Data centers fit into this model by providing long-term leases without exposure to energy commodity price fluctuations.
The collaboration comes amid a surge of new data center developments across Texas. According to filings with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, construction budgets for new data centers in December alone exceed $1.4 billion statewide—over 40 percent of all registered U.S. data center construction costs this year.
