Twelve attorneys general from Republican-led states urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to authorize the Green Chile Project, saying the states "have a direct stake" in both the fight over this pipeline and how FERC handles similar proposals in the future.
Green Chile is a 17.8-mile (29 kilometer) natural gas lateral in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, proposed by Energy Transfer LP. It would pull gas from the company's Transwestern pipeline and be capable of transporting up to 400 million cubic feet per day.
With long waits for grid connections, more data-center builders are opting to make their own electricity with natural gas. Many of these projects need short laterals to reach larger interstate pipelines, just as Green Chile would tap Transwestern.
To address pollution concerns, Oracle proposed limiting the Bloom Energy fuel-cell generation that would power the site. In a Thursday statement, the company said the cap would reduce projected emissions by 35%.
Project Jupiter has turned into a bellwether for Silicon Valley's push to pair AI data centers with dedicated power, even as political and regulatory resistance grows.
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New Mexico, led by Democrats, is pressing for a broader federal environmental review that considers the pipeline together with the data center it would serve, saying the projects lack "independent utility." The 12 attorneys general counter that FERC does not approve in-state facilities like data centers and lacks any power to oversee them. They argue FERC's handling of Green Chile could set a template that may be used for comparable gas-supplied data center projects in other states.
The roster of signatories is West Virginia, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio and South Carolina. Their involvement, despite having no direct role in the New Mexico project, is unusual. For Republican-led states aiming to grow natural gas industries and lure data centers, the stakes are clear: if opponents of Project Jupiter succeed, that could give critics a roadmap to thwart comparable developments in other states.
Meanwhile, the New Mexico campus has run into obstacles that could derail what was expected to be a flagship example of this expansion under President Donald Trump's second term. The project already fell short in a bid for a key pipeline permit, and Oracle is weighing a costly stopgap to truck natural gas to the site.
What FERC decides on Green Chile will signal how regulators approach the next wave of data centers that plan to bring their own power. If opponents prevail in New Mexico, expect a clearer playbook for challenges elsewhere as pushback against sprawling campuses spreads, including in conservative regions.
For now, the near-term variables are simple: a 17.8-mile lateral sized for up to 400 million cubic feet per day, a 2.45-gigawatt campus, and a regulatory path that will determine whether the fuel flows by pipeline or through a pricier interim plan to truck it in.
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