OpenAI, Oracle, and Vantage Data Centers have confirmed plans to establish a data centre campus in Port Washington, Wisconsin, US, as part of the Stargate infrastructure expansion.

The $15bn campus dubbed Lighthouse, will comprise four data centres. It is projected to deliver almost one gigawatt (1GW) of AI compute capacity. The development is set to begin construction shortly with completion targeted for 2028.

This site forms part of OpenAI and Oracle’s previously announced commitment to supply up to 4.5GW of additional Stargate capacity.

The companies have identified Port Washington as the Midwest site in the Stargate network expansion, which will extend the partners’ technical footprint in North America.

OpenAI industrial compute vice president Peter Hoeschele said: “Expanding Stargate to Wisconsin is another major step towards building the infrastructure that will help ensure everyone can benefit from AI.”

Vantage plans to match all energy consumption at the campus annually with renewable energy purchases. It will enable the development of new zero-emission generation projects in Wisconsin, spanning solar, wind, and battery storage.

According to companies, 70% of this new generation will supply the Lighthouse campus, while the remainder will be distributed to other Wisconsin consumers.

Oracle Cloud Infrastructure executive vice president Mahesh Thiagarajan said: “Oracle’s highly performant, secure and cost-effective AI infrastructure is fuelling a new era of innovation that will fortify American leadership in AI worldwide.”

The data centre design will incorporate a closed-loop liquid cooling system to minimise water requirements.

In addition, Vantage will fund local water restoration projects intended to replace more water into freshwater sources than the campus consumes.

Development will occur on 500 of a total 672 acres, with the balance retained for natural spaces.

Vantage has committed at least $175m to local infrastructure upgrades, including expanded water and wastewater treatment, new water mains and sewer lines, a new water tower, and upgraded power infrastructure.

The cost of power upgrades will be covered by Vantage, with a dedicated rate supplied by We Energies.

Vantage is also advancing other large-scale digital infrastructure projects, including the Frontier campus in Shackelford County, Texas. Its principal investors in its North America platform are DigitalBridge Group and Silver Lake.

Vantage North America president Dana Adams said: “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 neighbour and is prioritising investing in sustainable energy, minimising local impact and partnering closely with the community to be an economic driver for the state.”