The Power Connection Digest logo in full color
May 14, 2026

Peter Cook, Editor

Busy week!  Let’s jump right in.

 

Super excited to welcome new sponsors for the 2nd Annual Permian Power Connection ConferenceOutback Remote Power (Gold), US Helicals (Gold), InvestNext (Gold), ConocoPhillips (Silver). Armadillo Hotel (Silver), EquipmentShare (Silver), PDM (Logo) McGriff (Logo), The Abundance Institute (Supporting Org), and IMasons (Supporting Org).  Now both the Silver and the Logo Sponsorships are sold out.

 

We only have a handful of Gold and Platinum Sponsorships remaining, so don’t wait too long to grab your spot!

 

Also thrilled to have added speakers from Google, ConocoPhillips, IMasons, Hibernia Resources, Newmark, Liberty Power Innovations, Downing Power Consulting, and more!

 

Register today to join what promises to be a fantastic event!  We have sponsors hosting cigar receptions, VIP suites at a ballgame, virtual golf, receptions, VIP dinners, etc.  Should be great information, unsurpassed networking, and a lot of fun!

 

And now, the news…

The Power Connection Digest Issue #55

Trump, Sec. of Interior, Administrator of EPA Take Note of the Permian

Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, Congressman August Pfluger, Senator Sparks, Speaker Craddick, Midland Mayor Blong and others were in a PBPA meeting. Midway through, President Trump and Lee Zeldin called in. The President thanked Permian oil producers for their essential role in American national security.

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VoltaGrid Announces $1 Billion Strategic Equity Investment from Blackstone and Halliburton

Proceeds of the capital raise will be used to accelerate deployment of VoltaGrid’s behind- the-meter power generation solutions for data centers, microgrids, and industrial applications. VoltaGrid is a Platinum Sponsor for the Permian Power Connection Conference.

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Google Signs 500MW Texas Solar Deal With Linea Energy to Power Data Center Growth

Google, one of the latest companies to join the agenda at the Permian Power Connection Conference, signed a 15-year power purchase agreement with Linea Energy for 500MW of solar power in Texas.

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Fervo Energy Launches Blockbuster IPO

The offering raised $1.89 billion after being upsized multiple times to meet investor demand. The first-day pop reflects the market’s conviction that geothermal energy has a real role to play in powering AI infrastructure.

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Microsoft in Talks to Ax Energy Pledge Amid Data Center Boom

The company is weighing whether to delay — or even abandon altogether — its 2030 target of matching 100% of its hourly electricity use with renewable energy purchases. Of course, much of the coverage was negative, but if true this is a wise move by the company.

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Solaris Energy Infrastructure Announces Completion of $2 Billion Financing and Expansion of Existing Power Contract

Solaris Energy Infrastructure has completed nearly $2 billion of financing transactions to support growth. They also announced it has signed an amendment to expand an existing contract in size as well as enhanced balance of plant scope. Solaris is a sponsor at the Permian Power Connection Conference.

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Fermi Inc. Outlines Fermi 2.0 Strategic Evolution and Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results

After a rough few months, Fermi is positioning themselves to bounce back.

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Chad Williams Unveils New AI Infrastructure Platform

A year after departing as CEO of QTS Data Centers, Williams has unveiled the details of his new infrastructure and energy company that will develop powered campuses for AI factories, advanced manufacturing, and other energy-intensive operations.

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Midstream Should Lead Electrification of Large-Scale Behind-the-Meter Consumers

Former GPSA President Jeff Stake, P.E., Executive Vice President, NTACT Operations, writes that North America’s energy system is undergoing a shift in how power is produced, delivered, and consumed.

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The Crypto to AI Power Shift Accelerates

Call it the Power Shift. Over the past three years, companies that procured huge amounts of power for cryptocurrency are refocusing their business models on AI and HPC. We'll be talking about this in Midland at the Permian Power Connection Conference.

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Nebius plans second US gigawatt-scale data center campus in Pennsylvania

The data center will have 1.2GW of capacity upon full completion, and the neocloud is now targeting 4GW of contracted power by the end of this year.

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The Machine That Builds the Machine

We pointed AI at a West Texas permit database. It found the site, modeled the power, structured the financing, and rendered the campus. Before anyone announced it.

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A Message For Datacenter Developers: Get Your Act Together, Pronto

After watching the oil & gas industry struggle with public relations and social license for decades, David has some advice for data center developers.

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Texas Data Centers Have a Problem: Power and Water Cannot Be Afterthoughts

The question is no longer only whether a project can be announced. The more important question is whether it can be built, powered, operated, and accepted by the communities around it.

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Power, Water, and Permits: Siting and Interconnecting Data Centers in Texas – Part III

Jenna Montesano Burns's third part of the series looks hard at state, local, ad water permitting.

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West Texas built one boom. It can build another

Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett, who spoke last year at the Permian Power Connection Conference, shares some insights on West Texas.

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The Real Estate Industry Is Quietly Relearning Infrastructure

AI infrastructure is forcing real estate, energy, and technology into the same conversation. That shift is why so many professionals across development, utilities, engineering, private equity, and economic development are trying to rapidly build literacy around data centers right now.

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Podcast: The Future of Energy

Tracee Bentley, President and CEO of the Permian Strategic Partnership, joins Jordan Wat to explore whether the communities powering the nation's most productive oil field can grow as fast as the wells beneath them.

Read More

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