Google has announced a new data center in Wilbarger County, Texas, to be powered by onsite ‘clean energy’ from US energy firm AES.

According to Google, the data center will be co-located with, or built in close proximity to, new clean power plants developed and operated by AES under a “power first” approach. This will ensure the data center comes online alongside the colocated energy infrastructure, which the company said will reduce the need for new infrastructure and optimize existing grid utilization. The company did not provide a timeline for the data center's construction.

Wilbarger County is a county located in the North Texas region. The county seat is the city of Vernon.

AES has already secured the land and interconnection agreements required for the project and said that it will build the necessary shared electricity infrastructure for the co-located facility. The two companies have also signed a series of 20-year Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) tied to the colocated assets.

"Our expanded partnership with Google demonstrates how AES can accelerate data center development by delivering powered land and energy at scale," said Andrés Gluski, AES president and CEO. "AES is recognized as a world leader in providing energy solutions to technology companies. To-date, AES has signed agreements for nearly 12GW of energy with data center customers, 9GW of these are PPAs directly with hyperscalers."

AES will own and operate the generation assets, in addition to providing retail, cost-optimization, and related services to the data center under a long-term energy management agreement.

"Google's data centers are long-term investments in the communities we call home, and our new site in Wilbarger County will be no exception," said Amanda Peterson Corio, Google global head of data center energy. "In partnership with AES, we are bringing new clean generation online directly alongside the data center to minimize local grid impact and protect energy affordability. We are also pairing this new power with advanced air-cooling to eliminate operational water use, ensuring Texas remains both sustainable and resource abundant."

Once complete, the data center is expected to use advanced air-cooling technology, limiting water consumption to only critical campus operations, such as kitchens. Google has also committed to replenishing more water than it consumes and to collaborating with groups like Texan by Nature and Texas Water Trade to improve watershed health across the state.

Google has a firm presence in the Texas market, with operational data center campuses in Midlothian and Red Oak, as well as two under-construction sites in Armstrong and Haskell Counties.

Last November, Google announced a huge investment in the state, committing $40 billion through 2027.

“Texas is at the center of the world’s AI leadership, and our expansion into Wilbarger County is a testament to the state's incredible talent and infrastructure,” said Andrew Hart, head of data center public affairs for Texas at Google. “We are proud of our close collaboration with local leaders to bring a new Google data center to Wilbarger County, ensuring the Lone Star State continues to be home to American innovation and affordable, abundant energy.”