Oracle cites ‘force majeure’ to shield itself on data center, Bloomberg News reports

Oracle has invoked "force majeure" provisions in its contract with Blue Owl, the builder of a large New Mexico data center project dubbed Project Jupiter, to shield itself from potential delays, according to Bloomberg News. The notice, obtained by Reuters, cites potential power supply issues as the reason for the delay, which is Oracle's responsibility under the agreement.

However, Oracle cannot terminate the lease for the data center site, which has reportedly faced setbacks such as delays to a natural-gas pipeline and legal challenges over water and air-quality permits. Blue Owl, which holds about $3 billion in equity in the project, will still receive the higher rent for the initially planned duration, but the start date will be delayed.

The project is part of Oracle's broader agreement with OpenAI to provide AI computing capacity and is part of the Stargate initiative, an $500 billion investment commitment involving OpenAI, SoftBank Group and other partners. While Oracle is attempting to delay payments should the project fail to come online in 2028, the company maintains that Project Jupiter remains on schedule.