Nvidia has agreed to provide a guarantee of up to $105 billion to help OpenAI lease a large data center in Pike County, Ohio, being developed by SoftBank-owned SB Energy, according to Reuters.

The chipmaker also said it will invest $1.5 billion in SB Energy, months after a $1 billion investment from OpenAI and SoftBank to expand data center infrastructure. The deal is one of Nvidia’s largest infrastructure financing commitments.

Nvidia to Supply Chips for Ohio AI Facility

The company will be the exclusive chip provider for the Ohio facility, which will have a total capacity of as much as 8 gigawatts. The first 800 megawatts are expected to come online in 2028, and OpenAI is leasing the site for 20 years.

“We are securing long-lived infrastructure for Nvidia compute so OpenAI can deploy the most productive AI factories that can be upgraded repeatedly with each new generation delivering more intelligence and better economics,” Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said.

The financing structure has not yet been defined and will include equity, people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The equity may include capital raised by a potential SB Energy IPO and SoftBank direct investment. After the total equity amount is defined, the debt portion will likely include project finance loans and potentially public debt such as bonds, the people said.

Land and Power Remain Key Hurdles

Land and power are becoming major hurdles for data centers because of the aging and strained U.S. grid and growing community opposition to new construction over concerns about higher electricity prices and potential water wastage.

Nvidia said its guarantee covers part of the lease and power payments, as well as a commitment to ensure the site retains a minimum value. The guarantee does not cover the full cost of the project or all of OpenAI’s obligations. OpenAI will pay the rent, but if it defaults, Nvidia will cover the gap between the guaranteed minimum value and what the owner can recover by re-leasing or selling the site.

The deal comes as Nvidia faces scrutiny over financing arrangements tied to AI infrastructure. Last week, Nvidia partnered with six major financial institutions, including BlackRock, to launch financing platforms targeting more than $500 billion in third-party funding for AI infrastructure. Huang said the Ohio deal was not circular financing and that Nvidia is using “its scale and long-term visibility” to help.

Why It Matters

“Investors are right to be worried about what seems to be a never-ending loop of AI deals, but realistically the field of players isn’t all that vast, and there was always going to be a degree of circular financing,” said Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell.

“The biggest test is whether these investments ultimately generate decent returns for all those laying out cash, and that’s something that can only be figured out further down the line.”

Huang said the site, which would have an initial capacity of 4.25 gigawatts, could contribute as much as $200 billion to Nvidia’s revenue. Overall, Nvidia could make $600 billion in revenue from OpenAI by 2030 by selling it 16 gigawatts of computing power, including a 3.75-gigawatt expansion of the Ohio site. One gigawatt of computing power is enough electricity to power roughly 750,000 U.S. homes on average.

To support the project, SoftBank and SB Energy plan to build at least 10 gigawatts of new power generation and invest $4.2 billion in new regional grid infrastructure through a partnership with AEP Ohio. The project is expected to create about 35,000 construction jobs through 2032 and about 2,500 long-term operating jobs, OpenAI said. Sources told Reuters the project has a low risk of construction delays from local opposition because of state support, expected job creation, an $80 million commitment from OpenAI and SoftBank to fund community projects, the use of federal land, and the involvement of the U.S. Departments of Commerce and Energy.