US energy company NRG Energy has partnered with LandBridge Company, an oil and gas landowner, to explore the development of a natural gas power plant that could supply a data center in Reeves County, Texas.

The companies signed a strategic agreement that outlines plans for a 1.1GW grid-connected natural gas power generation facility that NRG would build if it secures a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with a data center operator.

Initial air permit applications and electric interconnection requests have already been submitted, with the companies claiming that if successful, it could pave the way for operations to begin at the end of 2029.

“We are pleased to explore bringing reliable energy solutions to West Texas,” said Robert J. Gaudette, EVP, president of NRG business and wholesale operations. “Once anchored by a long-term customer, the site has the potential to foster innovation and support data center growth, economic resilience, and grid stability in the region.”

The location owned by LandBridge is located adjacent to the Waha Gas market hub, providing direct access to existing ‘low-cost natural gas’ and transmission infrastructure.

“NRG’s selection of this site for potential development of critical power generation supported by a data center project marks an exciting step forward for both LandBridge and the entire Delaware Basin,” said Jason Long, CEO of LandBridge. “The collaboration further advances our powered land strategy and highlights the compelling value that LandBridge offers to blue-chip power generators, and to developers of digital infrastructure, particularly data centers.”

LandBridge owns approximately 277,000 surface acres across Texas and New Mexico, primarily located in the Delaware sub-region of the Permian Basin. The company was formed by Five Point Infrastructure LLC, a private equity firm.

NRG Energy has signed several agreements over the past few months aimed at developing natural gas power solutions for the data center sector. In February, the Houston-based energy company signed a 295MW supply agreement to power two data centers in Texas.

The deals will power two undisclosed data centers and will likely be powered by assets acquired by NRG in May from LS Power. The $12 billion deal saw NRG acquire 18 natural gas generation facilities with a combined capacity of 13GW, and a virtual power plant platform - dubbed CPower - with 6GW of capacity, located across the Northeast and Texas.

Before this, in February, the firm penned letters of intent with two data center developers, PowLan and Menlo Equities, to develop 500MW and 300MW of gas power generation, respectively.

In addition, it signed a project development agreement with power equipment manufacturer GE Vernova and construction firm TIC to develop up to 5.4GW of natural gas generation. The four plants will serve the ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas) wholesale market in Texas and the PJM Interconnection wholesale market to meet demand from the data center sector.