Yucca Growth Infrastructure is giving up its right to a decision by November 23 on a critical air quality permit, extending the timeline so state environmental regulators can complete their review rather than potentially deny the application, Bloomberg reported.
- The permit is required for the substantial power generation capacity needed to operate Project Jupiter, a large data center campus Oracle is developing for OpenAI.
- The move to waive the deadline provides the New Mexico Environment Department additional time to assess technical details, including updated emissions projections.
- Project Jupiter is designed to draw significant electricity from an on-site microgrid relying on Bloom Energy fuel cells, supplied in part by a natural gas pipeline being built by Energy Transfer LP.
Yucca Growth Infrastructure LLC, the firm building power infrastructure for Oracle Corp.’s (ORCL) New Mexico data center, has reportedly agreed to waive a looming regulatory deadline, instead of risking an application denial.
The company is giving up its right to a decision by November 23 on a critical air quality permit, extending the timeline so state environmental regulators can complete their review rather than potentially deny the application, Bloomberg reported.
The permit is required for substantial power generation capacity needed to operate Project Jupiter, a large data center campus Oracle is developing for OpenAI. Without it, construction of the supporting power infrastructure cannot proceed. By voluntarily extending the deadline, Yucca Growth Infrastructure avoids a potential denial that could force a restart of the process.
The move provides the New Mexico Environment Department additional time to assess technical details, including updated emissions projections. A public hearing on the permit has been scheduled for early December, Bloomberg said.
Project Jupiter is situated in southern New Mexico’s Doña Ana County, near Santa Teresa. It is designed to draw significant electricity from an on-site microgrid relying on Bloom Energy fuel cells, supplied in part by a natural gas pipeline being built by Energy Transfer LP (ET). Oracle and its partners have advanced building construction on the data center site itself, which does not require the same air permit, while power infrastructure remains subject to separate regulatory approval.
While ORCL shares traded 7% lower at the time of writing, BE dived 16%, on track for its worst day since late June, if losses hold.
The project has faced repeated hurdles. Environmental groups have challenged the air permit application, and regulators have raised questions about emissions modeling. In mid-October, Oracle and Yucca Growth Infrastructure proposed changes, including an enforceable cap on fuel cell output, that the companies said would reduce permitted emissions by roughly 35% without altering planned IT capacity. Separate federal review of the associated natural gas pipeline has also drawn scrutiny.
How Did ORCL, BE Retail Traders React?
On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around ORCL stock stayed within ‘bullish’ territory at the time of writing, while sentiment around BE was ‘bullish.’
While ORCL stock has dived 41% year-to-date, BE has added 92%.
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