Crusoe, Lancium Announce 1 GW AI Data Center Campus in Childress, Texas
Crusoe and Lancium have announced a 1 gigawatt (GW) AI data centre campus in Childress, Texas, extending the partnership model the two companies established at their Abilene site, according to a press release distributed via GlobeNewswire.
Market Impact
The grid-connected campus spans 270 acres owned by Lancium, which will develop and manage the site’s energy infrastructure, while Crusoe designs, builds and operates the AI data centre itself. Construction is expected to begin in Q3 2026, and the companies say the project will create thousands of local construction jobs plus more than 100 long-term positions in Childress County.
At full scale, the site will support hundreds of thousands of AI accelerators for training or inference. The campus will draw on behind-the-meter solar and energy storage resources for grid reliability, and will use a closed-loop, non-evaporative liquid cooling system to reduce water use. Lancium and Crusoe say they will also invest directly in local water and civil infrastructure and support housing, education and emergency services in the community.
Childress is the second site built on this partnership structure. Crusoe broke ground on the Lancium-owned Abilene campus in June 2024, energizing its first two buildings within a year before expanding that site to 1.2 GW. Crusoe is also currently building a second 900 megawatt data centre on adjacent Lancium-owned land in Abilene.
What It Means for Subcontractors
- Civil, electrical and mechanical subs in the Texas Panhandle should track Childress County permitting and pre-qualification windows now, with construction slated to start Q3 2026.
- The behind-the-meter solar, storage and closed-loop cooling scope points to near-term subcontract packages for electrical infrastructure and mechanical/plumbing trades distinct from the core data centre shell.
- Firms that worked the Abilene build for Crusoe or Lancium have a track record advantage bidding into Childress, since the companies are explicitly repeating the same partnership and delivery model.
- Local trades should also watch Childress County civil infrastructure investment (water, roads) tied to the project, which typically generates separate public-works subcontract opportunities alongside the private data centre build.
