Oracle, OpenAI named partners in $15 billion Port Washington data center

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The name and users have been announced for the billion-dollar data center campus planned in Port Washington.

Denver-based Vantage Data Centers on Wednesday announced that Oracle and OpenAI are planning the artificial intelligence data center campus in Port Washington. The development is part of a deal between Oracle and OpenAI to invest up to 4.5 gigawatts of additional capacity in Stargate, an initiative to ramp up data centers advancing AI across the U.S.

Oracle, OpenAI and SoftBank said they were on a path to fulfilling a $500 billion investment to add 10 gigawatts of capacity to AI-focused data centers across the country. Both Oracle and Microsoft are pouring billions into data centers, and the latter announced a $4 billion investment in another facility in Mount Pleasant.

Vantage will invest $15 billion in the Port Washington campus, Reuters reported.

The Port Washington campus, called Lighthouse, will feature four data center buildings that will provide close to a gigawatt of AI capacity, Vantage officials said. Construction will “begin soon” and is scheduled for completion in 2028, officials added.

The project will create 4,000 skilled construction jobs, most of which will be union jobs, officials said. The project will also create more than 1,000 long-term jobs and thousands of indirect jobs, they added.

In September, Port Washington officials approved the 1,900-acre data center campus and shared plans to establish a tax increment district to reimburse Vantage for infrastructure upgrades and other project costs. Meanwhile, opposition has grown among residents who have shared concerns about data center energy and water use. Vantage officials said the campus will be designed to preserve local resources.

“As demand for data centers expands beyond traditional hubs, the upper Midwest has become a critical and strategic market for Vantage Data Centers and our customers,” said Dana Adams, president of North America at Vantage Data Centers. “Our investment in Wisconsin reflects the area’s strong foundation for digital growth to support sustainable AI innovation at scale. Vantage is committed to being a good neighbor and is prioritizing investing in sustainable energy, minimizing local impact and partnering closely with the community to be an economic driver for the state.”

Data center operators tout sustainability, water-saving measures

In its Wednesday announcement, Vantage said it will use clean energy sources, plant native trees to increase natural spaces and use a closed-loop liquid cooling system to minimize water use.

The project will feature solar, wind and battery storage to fulfill its energy needs, officials said. Seventy percent of the energy capacity will be used by the Lighthouse campus while 30% will be made available to local consumers, and remaining energy consumed by the campus will be matched with renewable energy purchases annually, officials added.

Vantage officials said the company will invest in local water restoration projects and aim to restore more water to freshwater sources than the amount of water the campus will consume.

The company will develop 500 of 672 acres for four data centers and will plant more than 2,000 native trees and native landscaping to preserve and enhance the surrounding natural space, officials added. The landscaping will feature improvements to existing wetlands and an 8-foot planted berm with native plants to reduce noise, they added.

Additionally, Vantage will pursue LEED certification for the lighthouse campus, officials said.

Vantage deal an ‘economic ripple effect’ across region

Project partners said the data center campus will contribute an estimated $2.7 billion to the regional gross domestic product. Vantage will also front $175 million for infrastructure upgrades such as expanded water capacity and wastewater treatment, both for the campus and for the Port Washington area.

“The benefits of welcoming data centers to Port Washington are undeniable. Vantage’s once-in-a-generation investment will create thousands of high-paying jobs—including more than 4,000 union-led construction and operational roles—driving long-term economic ripple effects across the region,” said Port Washington Mayor Ted Neitzke IV in a statement. “This investment will allow us to further strengthen public services and community development, enhancing the quality of life for our residents. We are proud to establish this partnership with Vantage and look forward to working closely with their team to progress this development while improving our city.”

The company said it will underwrite 100% of power infrastructure investment with a dedicated electricity rate from We Energies. The proposed rate is designed to protect other customers from price increases as Lighthouse is poised to use 1.3 gigawatts of electricity.

“By working with Vantage, we’re delivering new clean energy for the Lighthouse campus and generating lasting benefits for Wisconsin,” said Scott Lauber, president and CEO of WEC Energy Group, in a statement. “Together with Vantage, we are adding nearly two gigawatts of new energy to the grid, 30% of which will be dedicated to the homes, farms and other businesses we serve today. This unique and thoughtful strategy will deliver growth without raising rates for our other customers, aligning with our shared commitment to reliability, sustainability and a positive community impact.”

American Transmission Co. has plans for a $1.4 billion transmission line to support the data center, which will need approval from the Public Service Commission, Wisconsin Public Radio reported.

In September, OpenAI and Oracle entered a contract to buy $300 billion in computing power over the next five years, The Wall Street Journal reported. The companies and Softbank announced the Stargate initiative which would introduce five new AI data centers across the U.S., including the recent announcement in Wisconsin. Abilene, Texas, was picked for the flagship site.

Port Washington planning tax incentives for data center campus

On Tuesday, the Port Washington Common Council met to discuss proposed tax increment district for hundreds of acres near Interstate 43 where four data center buildings are proposed and a stretch of farmland north of the site for future development. The district is meant to reimburse the developer for fronting $175 million in upgraded infrastructure costs.

Dozens of members of the public attended and spoke for nearly an hour at a public hearing, and so many attended that Port Washington officials had to move the meeting to a larger venue to accommodate larger crowd sizes, local media reported. In past meetings, residents spoke about loss of farmland, the use of Lake Michigan water and how a new large-scale project would impact the energy grid.

Through the district, the project is expected to create $2.11 billion in incremental value by January 2032. City officials said they aimed to enact the district when construction starts around January 2026. The current land value is around $121 million.

The Common Council will meet again on Nov. 4 to review the district plan. The Joint Review Board will likely meet later in November to discuss final approval.