Today, xAI released a statement concerning Colossus 2, its second data center here in Memphis:
“In mid-February we broke ground at our new data center at Tulane in Shelby County, Tennessee. We have begun deploying the initial phase of computing infrastructure.
“This initiative includes the installation of an additional 110,000 NVIDIA GB200 GPUs, powered by a diverse array of energy sources, similar to Colossus. We are building similar redundancies for Colossus 2 that mimics the success we’ve seen at Colossus.
“This includes Tesla Megapacks to provide critical support during peak demand periods, ensuring a stable power supply while safeguarding Shelby County residents from potential blackouts. We expect to power on this facility within the next few weeks. As is the case at Electrolux, we are excited to be a valuable partner to Memphis.”
That diverse array of energy sources includes natural gas turbines that have been stored at a nearby site. These will more than likely be running in Southaven, MS, as Samuel Hardiman reports:
The post from xAI follows the company purchasing what was once a natural gas plant in Southaven, Mississippi last week.
The company also purchased easements for electric transmission lines to head north from Southaven to Colossus 2 in Whitehaven. The old natural gas plant at 2875 Stanton Road is about a mile south of Colossus 2 in Memphis.
The company has stockpiled natural gas turbines at a nearby vacant lot for weeks. The Daily Memphian has observed trailers emblazoned with APR Energy, a firm that provides power solutions to data centers, and trucks from Allied Power, a Louisana company that specializes in the power industry, in Southaven at the vacant lot where xAI has stockpiled energy materials.
On an on-background call with Hardiman, an xAI representative said that the Tennessee Valley Authority and Memphis Light, Gas and Water is only supplying 30 megawatts to the site during the first phase of operation, out of the 170 needed. Future phases will require more power, with reporting in May stating that 1.1 gigawatts of power could be needed once the site is fully up and running. That figure could power 40% of the entire city.