Fermi lands $200 million prepayment as Amazon is reported back
Fermi said an unnamed hyperscaler will pay $200 million upfront for 600 megawatts of power at its Texas campus, and the Financial Times reported the customer is Amazon — a reversal a year after talks collapsed.
A year after walking away, Amazon is reported back
Fermi, the Texas data-centre developer co-founded by former US energy secretary Rick Perry, said on Thursday that an unnamed investment-grade hyperscaler had agreed to pay $200 million upfront to advance 600 megawatts of power capacity at its Project Matador campus near Amarillo, beginning in 2027. The next day, the Financial Times reported that people familiar with the matter had identified the customer as Amazon, nearly a year after talks between the two companies collapsed last December.
The report marks a sharp reversal for a company that has struggled to land a major tenant. When Fermi floated in October 2025, investors sent its valuation above $19 billion, but the excitement faded after Amazon withdrew a $150 million investment and talks with Oracle also soured. By April, co-founder Toby Neugebauer had been ousted as chief executive, and Fermi had lost more than 80 percent of its peak market value.
Cash first, lease later
The deal is structured to put money in Fermi's hands before any lease is signed. Alongside the $200 million prepayment, the customer signed a $15 million early construction and site development agreement, and the two sides are finalising a $90 million purchase of structural steel and building materials that Fermi secured in advance. Fermi said it would begin work on its Amarillo site by December 1, but did not say when the full agreement would be finalised.
The clock is ticking. Fermi must still secure financing and sign a tenant taking at least 200 megawatts by December 31 to satisfy conditions in its 99-year land lease with Texas Tech University. The company is targeting initial power in June or July 2027, and says it has five gas turbines on site, 4.6 miles of natural gas lines and 300 acres prepared at the campus, which it plans to expand to about 17 gigawatts over time.
A bruised balance sheet, and a $6.5 billion hole
The new agreement arrived alongside weak quarterly results. Fermi reported a net loss of $141.6 million, or 22 cents a share, in the third quarter, wider than the 8 cents a share loss analysts had expected, according to FactSet. The pre-revenue company ended the quarter with $286.3 million in cash against roughly $958 million in debt, and invested $133.4 million in the site during the quarter, taking its property and equipment to about $1.67 billion.
Fermi also confirmed that a $6.5 billion deal with neocloud TensorWave, signed in August, had collapsed, along with an associated credit-support agreement with chip maker Advanced Micro Devices. The setback comes as co-founder Neugebauer, the largest shareholder, calls for the company to be sold. The shares rose 18 percent on Wednesday and 12 percent on Thursday to $2.02, and the Financial Times said they had risen 24 percent since Thursday — still about 90 percent below a 52-week closing high of $18.36.
- $200 millionPrepayment from the unnamed hyperscaler
- 600 MWInitial power capacity, starting in 2027
- $15 millionEarly construction agreement
- $90 millionSteel and materials purchase being finalised
- 200 MWMinimum tenant size Fermi must sign by December 31
