Crusoe sells troubled Wyoming data center project to Google

Crusoe, an eight-year-old, Denver-based data center developer recently valued at $30.9 billion, confirmed Friday it has sold an unfinished data center project in southeastern Wyoming to Google.

Google, which Crusoe had tried and failed to land as a customer for the project, is taking over the development after reportedly raising concerns about its cost and construction timeline under Crusoe’s management.

Crusoe initially announced the project last year with Blackstone-backed infrastructure company Tallgrass, planning to eventually scale it to 10 gigawatts of power capacity.

Google did not disclose how much it paid Crusoe for the unfinished project, bu it announced  plans to invest $17 billion to develop the data center campus.

The deal highlights how difficult it can be for independent data center developers to deliver massive projects on time and within budget, given the challenges of securing equipment and power. Growing opposition from local communities can further complicate development.

Despite taking over the Wyoming facility, Google hasn’t walked away from working with Crusoe entirely. Crusoe is developing another data center for Google near Amarillo, Texas.

The deal to sell the site to Google was first reported by Bloomberg in June, but the Wyoming setback didn’t stop Crusoe from raising a $3.9 billion round in September.