Meta Platforms and XGS Energy have announced a significant collaboration to develop a 150 MW next-generation geothermal power project in New Mexico. This initiative will supply clean, reliable, and water-free electricity to Meta’s data center operations while also contributing to the PNM electric grid.
Urvi Parekh, Global Head of Energy at Meta, emphasized the strategic importance of this partnership: “Advances in AI necessitate robust energy infrastructure. Next-generation geothermal technologies, such as those pioneered by XGS, are ready for scale and can play a crucial role in supporting the growth of AI and domestic data center development. We are excited to collaborate with XGS to unlock a new category of energy supply for our New Mexico operations.”
XGS Energy’s innovative closed-loop geothermal system breaks traditional barriers by operating without water and independent of specific geological conditions. Instead, it utilizes a proprietary pipe-in-pipe heat exchanger and advanced thermally conductive materials to extract heat from deep underground. This approach ensures long-term energy reliability, conserves vital water resources in arid regions like New Mexico, and allows for deployment in diverse geological settings previously unsuitable for conventional geothermal.
Josh Prueher, Chief Executive Officer at XGS Energy, commented, “We are proud to support Meta’s ambitious AI objectives and accelerate access to new round-the-clock power supplies. New Mexico is a growing hub for data center development, and XGS technology uniquely enables the delivery of clean, water-independent geothermal power to this market at significant scale.”
New Mexico holds vast untapped geothermal potential, with a recent report by Project InnerSpace, New Mexico Tech, and the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources estimating over 160 gigawatts of developable geothermal energy. This project alone is expected to increase New Mexico’s geothermal output tenfold, providing critical baseload power for Meta’s data center and contributing to grid stabilization with zero-carbon electricity. PNM President and CEO Don Tarry noted that the 150 MW agreement will be developed in two phases, both projected to be operational by 2030 and sited within the PNM electric grid.
Beyond emission reductions, the XGS-Meta project offers substantial environmental benefits, including zero water usage, enhanced grid stability through baseload power, and the demonstration of scalable, decentralized clean energy solutions. Economically, the project is anticipated to create approximately 3,000 construction jobs and 100 permanent roles, attracting further clean energy and technology investment to the region.
Meta’s commitment to this next-generation geothermal technology aligns with its broader renewable energy strategy. As one of the world’s largest corporate buyers of clean energy, Meta has contracted over 11,700 MW of wind and solar, already matching 100% of its global electricity use with renewables as of 2023. This geothermal investment further diversifies Meta’s clean energy portfolio, providing a constant, dispatchable power source crucial for the growing energy demands of AI and cloud computing.
The U.S. Department of Energy projects a significant role for advanced geothermal in the nation’s future energy mix, potentially supplying up to 300 GW of clean firm capacity by 2050. As drilling costs decrease and reliability improves, geothermal is increasingly competitive with other renewable sources. The success of the New Mexico project could catalyze wider adoption of zero-water geothermal, demonstrating how corporate leadership can accelerate the transition to next-generation clean energy solutions.
