West Texas is set to become the site of one of the largest energy and data infrastructure developments in the United States, following recent regulatory approval for a massive project planned in the Permian Basin. The project, known as GW Ranch, is being developed by Pacifico Energy and will combine large-scale natural gas power generation with data center facilities designed to support growing digital and artificial intelligence workloads.
According to Pacifico Energy, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) approved the project’s air permit this month, clearing a major regulatory hurdle. The permit allows for up to 7.65 gigawatts of gas-fired power generation, using a combination of small and large natural gas turbines. The scale of the permit makes GW Ranch the largest permitted data center campus in the country, according to the company.
The planned campus will cover more than 8,000 acres in Pecos County, roughly 17 miles north of Fort Stockton and southwest of Odessa, in a region long associated with oil and gas production. The location places the development near existing natural gas resources and infrastructure, which Pacifico Energy says is a key factor in the project’s design.
The GW Ranch development comes at a time when electricity demand is rising across the United States, driven in part by the rapid expansion of data centers that support cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and other digital services. In several regions, these large loads have raised concerns about grid reliability, electricity prices, and the ability of utilities to meet future demand.
Pacifico Energy says its approach is intended to address those concerns by keeping the project largely separate from the public electricity grid. The company plans to operate a private power system that combines natural gas turbines with solar generation and battery storage. By supplying power directly to on-site data centers, the company argues that the project will not add strain to the Texas grid or increase costs for residential and business ratepayers.
“Receiving TCEQ approval for the largest power project in the United States is a defining milestone for GW Ranch, and clears a critical path for delivering power at a scale the market urgently needs,” said Constantyn Gieskes, vice president of project development at Pacifico Energy.
The company expects to begin delivering power to customers in the first half of 2027. While the initial phases are expected to come online earlier, Pacifico Energy says the site has a guaranteed pathway to scale to more than 5 gigawatts of capacity over time, depending on customer demand.
In addition to its energy and technology implications, the project is expected to have a significant local economic impact. Pacifico Energy estimates that construction will create thousands of temporary jobs, while ongoing operations will support hundreds of permanent, high-paying positions. The company also projects substantial increases in local and state tax revenues once the facility is fully operational.
Pacifico Energy has described GW Ranch as part of the “next wave of AI innovation,” reflecting broader trends in which energy development and digital infrastructure are increasingly planned together. As data center demand continues to grow nationwide, projects like GW Ranch are likely to play a central role in shaping how and where that growth occurs.
