Abstract:
On November 10, according to Reuters, a public hearing notice showed that
SpaceX plans to build a gas-fired power plant and supercomputing facility in Starship Base City, Texas, USA, with an estimated capital investment of approximately US$24 billion in the initial stage of the project
. The relevant facilities will be constructed, owned and operated by SpaceX.
Documents show that SpaceX has applied for property tax relief for the project. The Starship Base City Commission will hold a public meeting on December 9 to review the tax abatement application and related economic development agreements. The project may be advanced in multiple phases and include subsequent expansions. Once completed, it will become one of the largest private investment projects in the Rio Grande Valley region of Texas.
Reuters pointed out that self-built power generation facilities can reduce SpaceX’s dependence on the Texas main power grid and reduce the multi-year waiting time that large projects may face when connecting to the local power grid.
At the same time, Lone Star Mineral Development, a subsidiary of SpaceX, has submitted another construction plan to lay an approximately 8-mile natural gas pipeline called Starpipe, which is scheduled to be put into use in January 2027. The pipeline will transport natural gas to a liquefied methane production facility, and the fuel produced will be used in SpaceX Starship rockets.
SpaceX has previously incorporated artificial intelligence company xAI into its portfolio and has begun leasing computing power to companies such as Google and Anthropic. The third quarter data disclosed by the company showed that its revenue increased by 161% year-on-year, and its artificial intelligence business revenue increased to 9 times that of the same period last year. This supercomputing facility planning means that SpaceX is further expanding its artificial intelligence infrastructure.
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