CalEthos has launched a new subsidiary to integrate behind-the-meter geothermal power plants with pre-permitted shovel-ready data center projects.

TerraVolt Infrastructure Inc. will act as an Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) platform and provide turnkey solutions to hyperscalers, colocation providers, and data center developers seeking an expedited route to market.

In a release, CalEthos said it “believes TerraVolt’s IaaS Platform will be a game-changer for the data center industry. With AI, cloud computing, and high-performance computing driving exponential growth in electricity consumption, the demand for sustainable, clean energy-powered infrastructure is critical.”

Details on the type of geothermal power that will be utilized are limited. In addition, CalEthos has not revealed whether the subsidiary will develop its own projects or seek to partner with established market players.

TerraVolt has said it is currently evaluating sites in states with known geothermal resources that can be integrated with timely power plant construction, behind-the-meter power delivery, and large-scale data center developments.

CalEthos is a sustainable data center developer based out of Tustin, California. It is currently developing its data center in Southern California’s Lithium Valley. Slated to have a capacity of 420MW, CalEthos says that the data center will be powered by 100 percent geothermal and solar energy.

Geothermal is beginning to gain steam as a potential energy source for the data center sector, especially in the US market.

In a March report from US think tank Rhodium Group, it was estimated that through enhanced geothermal techniques that 55-64 percent of the projected growth at hyperscale facilities could be met with behind-the-meter geothermal, representing 15-17GW of new data center and geothermal capacity.

Several hyperscalers have already joined the bandwagon, signing deals with geothermal developers for long-term power.

Meta has been at the forefront of this drive, inking two deals across the US. Last August, the social media giant signed a deal with Sage Geosystems for up to 150MW of power to support its data center growth. Following this, in June, it signed a deal with XGS to offtake 150MW from a project in New Mexico.

Google has also got in on the act, signing a deal with Fervo Energy to purchase 115MW of geothermal power to power its Nevada data center portfolio.

In an effort to get geothermal projects greenlit, the Biden administration, in one of its last acts, streamlined permitting for geothermal projects. The Trump administration has also been supportive of geothermal, one of the few low carbon technologies alongside nuclear that it hasn’t actively attempted to stifle.