Why it matters: As AI workloads push toward gigawatt-scale energy demands, only a handful of locations worldwide can realistically support these facilities over decades, not just years.

The big picture: Building gigasite data centers, like the one being developed in Delta, Utah, that can support next-generation AI computing requires more than just power and fiber. It demands long-term alignment between infrastructure, government, and local communities.

What they’re saying: Creekstone Energy CEO Ray Conley at the 2025 Pacific Telecommunications Council Conference in Hawaii:

• “You’ve got to solve the first problem: how can I get a site that has a long-term trajectory with the most power possible. Obviously, it needs to have good fiber connectivity.”
• “But when you do a project of that scale and over that time frame, you also have to have government and community aligned with that larger vision.”
• “There’s not a lot of places in the US, if not the world, where you can really do that at gigawatt scale and have the resources to make that go.”

The bottom line: Gigawatt-scale infrastructure isn’t just an engineering challenge. It’s a partnership between energy, technology, and community that only works when everyone’s moving in the same direction.