Data center profile · 4069 Charles Martin Hall Rd, Rockdale, Milam County, Texas (former Alcoa smelter complex)

Bitdeer Rockdale

Bitdeer's 563 MW bitcoin-mining campus on the former Alcoa smelter site in Rockdale, Texas, now weighing an AI/HPC conversion after buying 200 adjacent acres, with no AI tenant yet

Bitcoin mining site; AI conversion under evaluation. All 563 MW of online capacity is crypto mining and hosting; Bitdeer calls the AI transition "in active evaluation" and has named no tenant, lease or budget. In Sept. 2026 it bought about 200 acres next door for roughly $100M to support future AI/HPC.
563 MW
online electrical capacity, all crypto mining
company figure, Aug. 2026; not AI load
742 MW
capacity the company says plans can scale to
563 MW online plus a 179 MW pipeline tranche, estimated for 2026 and not reported energized
584 MW
delivery capacity reserved under the Alcoa lease
the power-delivery ceiling on the existing grid connection
~$100M
cash paid for about 200 adjacent acres
closed by Sept. 1, 2026 (company release); site now about 255 acres
OperatorBitdeer Technologies Group, through subsidiary Dory Creek
CustomerNone for AI or colocation; the load is self-mining plus third-party mining hosting
Planned IT capacity450 MW at full build-out (our estimate from the company's 563 MW campus power figure)
First building in serviceOur estimate: 2029 or later (no dated power path yet).
Next deadline2026: Bitdeer's estimate for energizing the 179 MW expansion tranche; no energization had been reported
Power

Power and the grid

563 MW energized

ERCOT grid, delivered over the former Alcoa private networkIn service (mining load)
563 MW
online capacity serving bitcoin mining; the 2018 lease reserves 584 MW of delivery capacity; utility not named SEC filing · Oct. 2026
Expansion tranchePlanned
179 MW
listed as in planning, labeled crypto, estimated 2026; no queue entry found Company · Oct. 2026
Energized nowProposed
Not used, not on record, or dropped

Getting on the grid

Who supplies what, what it costs, and what is still not public.

  1. June 6, 2018
    Lease reserves 584 MW
    Bitdeer's subsidiary leases land, buildings and part of Alcoa's private power network, with 584 MW of capacity reserved. SEC filing · June 2018
  2. Oct. 15, 2025
    Hydro-cooling conversion online (mining)
    A 100 MW hydro-cooling conversion of mining capacity is fully online for mining. SEC filing · Oct. 2025
  3. Sept. 18, 2026
    New large-load rule adopted
    Texas adopts a rule for new or expanded grid connections of 75 MW or more, with study fees and security per MW; a 179 MW expansion would fall under it. News report · Oct. 2026

Grid upgrades

No grid upgrade for this campus's load is on record. Related grid records in the area:

What is next door

campus0.35 km · 345 kV+ substation0.40 km · 345 kV+ linecampus0.35 km · 345 kV+ substation0.40 km · 345 kV+ line

Distances from mapped lines and plants. OpenStreetMap · Oct. 2026

Permits

Permits checklist

1 granted · 4 checked, nothing on file

The existing mining campus runs on legacy site arrangements. Any AI build-out would need new state permits, which are paused for data centers.

Risks

What could slow it down

Lawsuits

1 case on record

Money

Money on record

~$100M
cash for the 200-acre adjacent parcel
company release; seller not named News report · Sept. 2026
$4.7B
Volta lease at Bitdeer's Tydal, Norway site (not Rockdale)
shown only so it is not credited to this campus News report · Oct. 2026

Not on record: AI tenant, lease value or conversion budget: no figures for AI at Rockdale through Oct. 18, 2026 Company · Oct. 2026

Timeline

What happened, and what is due

SitePaper trailConstructionPowerPermitsMoneyLegalUpcoming
  1. June 6, 2018
    Site Dory Creek (Bitdeer) signs the lease with Alcoa for the site and 584 MW of power delivery SEC filing · June 2018
  2. May 13, 2022
    Power Bitdeer shuts down the whole site during an ERCOT conservation appeal News report · Oct. 2026
  3. June 2025
    Site Initial seven-year lease term ends; Bitdeer exercises the first renewal, running to about June 2030 Company · April 2026
  4. Oct. 15, 2025
    Power 100 MW hydro-cooling conversion fully online (mining) SEC filing · Oct. 2025
  5. Dec. 8, 2025
    Permits Milam County grants abatements to neighboring Riot, none to Bitdeer Local government · Dec. 2025
  6. 2026
    Power Company estimate for the 179 MW expansion tranche (crypto); not reported energized Company · Oct. 2026
  7. May 12, 2026
    Site Bitdeer says it is in active dialogue with potential colocation tenants including Rockdale; its advanced talks are for Norway SEC filing · May 2026
  8. Aug. 10, 2026
    Power Company lists 563 MW online at Rockdale: crypto, AI transition in evaluation SEC filing · Aug. 2026
  9. Sept. 1, 2026
    Site Bitdeer completes purchase of about 200 acres nearby for about $100M SEC filing · Sept. 2026
  10. Sept. 18, 2026
    Permits Texas adopts new rules for grid connections of 75 MW or more News report · Oct. 2026
  11. Sept. 21, 2026
    Permits Governor pauses TCEQ data-center environmental permitting pending ERCOT review News report · Oct. 2026
  12. June 2030
    Site Current lease term ends; one 5-year option remains Company · April 2026
The buildings

Specs

About 255 acres
owned or operated in Milam County after the Sept. 2026 purchase
Through about June 2030
current lease term after the first 5-year extension; one more 5-year option remains
Who is involved

Owners, partners and builders

Owners and operators
  • Bitdeer Technologies Group (Nasdaq: BTDR): parent
  • Dory Creek, LLC: Bitdeer subsidiary and tenant of record
Landlord
  • Alcoa USA Corp.: landlord and owner of the private power network
Neighbors
  • Riot Platforms' Whinstone Rockdale campus: separate operator on the same former smelter complex; never combined with this site
Still unknown

Open questions

Where this comes from

112 records from 25 documents

Drawn from news reports, securities filings, public and commercial datasets, company statements, state agency records, local government records and court filings, each kept with its date and source. The bar shows documents by type.

News report 9SEC filing 6Dataset 5Company 4State agency 2Local government 1Court filing 1
Evidence

Every quote behind this page

Grade key: A = the primary record itself (permit, filing, exhibit) · B = a dated official statement · C = news reporting. Map distances are our own measurements on OpenStreetMap and carry no grade. Allegations in lawsuits are marked as such in the quotes.

Power (24)
  • Stated campus size: 563 MW
    “Online Electrical Capacity: 1) Rockdale, TX 563 Online Crypto to Colocation / AI Cloud In active evaluation of AI transition”
  • Stated campus size: 179 MW
    “4) Rockdale, TX 179 2026 Crypto / Colocation / AI Cloud In Planning”
  • Interconnection status: ERCOT: energized; 563 MW online electrical capacity at Rockdale per Bitdeer's power infrastructure summary (Form 6-K, as of Jul 31, 2026), with a further 179 MW in planning at the same site
    “Online Electrical Capacity: 1) Rockdale, TX 563 Online Crypto to Colocation / AI Cloud In active evaluation of AI transition”
  • Construction stage: operating - crypto mining facility online; a 100 MW hydro-cooling conversion was fully energized in 2025; in Sep 2026 Bitdeer acquired the adjacent 200-acre Alcoa parcel for AI/HPC expansion alongside
    “Rockdale, Texas – 100 MW Hydrocooling conversion has been fully energized”
  • Utility: not named in sources checked (ERCOT grid; former Alcoa smelter interconnection)
    “not named in sources checked (ERCOT grid; former Alcoa smelter site)”
    grade B
  • Nearest power line of 345 kV or more: 0.4 km
    Measured on OpenStreetMap map data.
  • Nearest substation of 345 kV or more: 0.35 km
    Measured on OpenStreetMap map data.
  • Nearest gas pipeline: 1.11 km
    Measured on OpenStreetMap map data.
  • Utility service: not stated
    “DOCUMENTED ABSENCE: no utility-issued contracted capacity figure for this campus appears in any document opened. Power is delivered over Alcoa's private utility network (PUN) under the 2018 Texas Lease, which reserves 584 MW of PUN delivery capacity for the tenant”
  • On-site generation: not stated
    “DOCUMENTED ABSENCE: no on-site generation is disclosed for this campus in any filing or release opened; the site draws grid power through the Alcoa PUN. The adjacent Sandow lignite plant (Luminant/Vistra) retired in 2018 and is not a Bitdeer asset.”
  • Power plan: grid - ERCOT, delivered over the legacy Alcoa private utility network (PUN)
    “a certain portion of Landlord's existing electric power delivery network (the Private User Network or PUN)”
  • interconnection: in service (legacy)
    “for a total of 584 megawatts shall be reserved for Tenant's use of the Landlord's PUN Equipment pursuant to the provisions of this Lease”
  • Portfolio context only (never booked to this campus): Bitdeer's global online electrical capacity subtotal was 1,752 MW and total portfolio capacity about 3.0 GW in the Aug 2026 disclosures. Rockdale's 563 MW is the larg
    “Online Electrical Subtotal: 1,752”
  • Stated campus size: 563 MW
    “Rockdale, TX 563 Online”
  • Moved from campus facts field 'expansion tranche': 179 MW in planning (not energized, not under construction) MW. Pipeline capacity in the issuer's 6-K infrastructure summaries from Jul 2025 through Jan 2026; reframed Se
    “Rockdale, Texas 179 In planning Crypto Estimate 2026”
  • Construction stage: Operating (crypto mining); 100 MW hydro-cooling conversion completed and fully energized in 2025
    “Rockdale, Texas - 100 MW Hydrocooling conversion has been fully energized”
  • IT capacity: not stated
    “Colocation AI Data Center: Bitdeer recently acquired 200 acres near existing 563 MW Rockdale facility to support AI/HPC infrastructure development”
  • Original target date: not stated
    “According to Bitdeer's response to a Congressional inquiry in July 2022, the site plans to add an additional 572 MW to the facility by the end of 2022”
  • During an ERCOT conservation appeal in May 2022, Bitdeer powered down the entirety of its Rockdale datacenter except capacity enrolled in responsive reserves (Bitdeer business-development lead Samantha Robertson, via Tex
    “Bitdeer powered down the entirety our datacenter in Rockdale on Friday, except for capacity enrolled in responsive reserves”
  • Bitdeer's July 2022 response to a Congressional inquiry contemplated adding 572 MW at Rockdale by end-2022 (per GEM). Actual online capacity reached 563 MW only by 2025 - sponsor plan figures for this site ran years ahea
    “According to Bitdeer's response to a Congressional inquiry in July 2022, the site plans to add an additional 572 MW to the facility by the end of 2022”
  • Site acres: 255 acres
    “Bitdeer owns and/or operates approximately 255 acres and 742 MW of existing and pipeline power capacity in Milam County”
  • Acreage: approximately 255 acres owned and/or operated in Milam County (after Sep 2026 acquisition)
    “Following this transaction, Bitdeer owns and/or operates approximately 255 acres and 742 MW of existing and pipeline power capacity in Milam County”
  • Water supply: Dedicated water supply (company statement, unquantified)
    “currently feature approximately 563 MW of interconnected grid capacity with existing plans expected to scale to 742 MW, and a dedicated water supply”
  • Rockdale delivery-yard context: Oncor TPIT 110026 (Tier 1, RPG 25RPG009, projected in-service May 15, 2028) upgrades the Temple Switch - Voss Lake Switch - Sandow Switch 138 kV line (38.9 circuit-miles), and TPIT 110040 (T
    “Upgrade Temple Switch - Voss Lake Switch - Sandow Switch 138 kV Line.”
Money and contracts (36)
  • Land acquisition: Bitdeer completed the fee-simple acquisition of approximately 200 acres of greenfield land in Milam County, near its existing Rockdale facility, for approximately $100 million in cash (announced Sep 1,
    “Bitdeer has completed the fee simple acquisition of approximately 200 acres of greenfield property in Milam County, Texas for total consideration of approximately $100 million”
  • Fee-simple acquisition of ~200 acres near the Rockdale facility for ~$100M cash, removing lease-renewal risk and giving Bitdeer full site control for AI/HPC development at Rockdale
    “Bitdeer has completed the fee simple acquisition of approximately 200 acres of greenfield property in Milam County, Texas for total consideration of approximately $100 million”
  • Bitdeer reports its Rockdale site in active evaluation of an AI transition, with colocation-tenant dialogue covering Rockdale (the advanced-stage negotiation it reports is for Tydal, Norway, not Rockdale); no Rockdale te
    “Bitdeer is in advanced stages of negotiations with a potential colocation tenant for Tydal, Norway and remains in active dialogue in Ohio, Rockdale, Texas and various other sites”
  • tax abatement: finding no agreement
    “FINDING: No Chapter 312 agreement or other county incentive naming Bitdeer or Dory Creek, LLC exists in the records opened; the Commissioners Court's only Rockdale data-center abatement actions (Dec 8, 2025) name Riot Rockdale, LLC and Milam County DC, LLC”
  • Tenant status: none - self-mining plus third-party hosting on Bitdeer’s own account; no AI or colocation tenant named
    “none (self-mining plus third-party hosting on Bitdeer’s own account; no AI or colocation tenant named)”
    grade B
  • Name: Bitdeer Rockdale (Bitdeer Rockdale Data Center)
    “Lease Agreement for the Datacenter in Rockdale, Texas”
  • Developer: Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR), via subsidiary Dory Creek, LLC
    “In June 2018, Dory Creek, LLC, our subsidiary, entered into the Lease Agreement with Alcoa USA Corp.”
  • Tenant status: No AI/colocation tenant; Rockdale carried as Crypto to Colocation / AI Cloud - in active evaluation of AI transition
    “Rockdale, TX 563 Online Crypto to Colocation / AI Cloud In active evaluation of AI transition”
  • Land control: Operating campus on land leased from Alcoa USA Corp. (Texas Lease Agreement, Jun 2018; first 5-year extension exercised, running to about Jun 2030); adjacent ~200-acre parcel acquired fee simple in Sep 2026
    “We exercised the first of two automatic renewal options to extend the term of this lease for two successive periods of five years”
  • lease: power circuit conveyance
    “Alcoa sells and conveys to us a 100% ownership interest in a certain PUN power circuit and the associated downstream components, subject to certain power delivery restrictions”
  • lease: extension exercised
    “We exercised the first of two automatic renewal options to extend the term of this lease for two successive periods of five years”
  • lease: rent escalation extension
    “on each January 1 during the Extension Term, the annual fixed rent shall increase by the greater of 2.5% or the percentage of the change in the CPI, not to exceed 5%”
  • lease: termination pun reversion
    “Upon termination of the Texas Lease Agreement, our interest and ownership in the PUN will revert to Alcoa”
  • Tenants: None named (self-mining; third-party hosting customers are not named in issuer filings)
    “Hosted 82,000”
  • lease: scope
    “Landlord hereby leases to Tenant the real property and personal property (the Land), certain existing buildings and improvements located on the Land and a certain portion of Landlord's existing electric power delivery network (the Private User Network or PUN)”
  • lease: capacity reservation 584 MW
    “for a total of 584 megawatts shall be reserved for Tenant's use of the Landlord's PUN Equipment pursuant to the provisions of this Lease”
  • lease: term 7 years
    “the initial term of this Lease shall commence on the Commencement Date and shall end on the last day of the month in which occurs the day preceding the expiration of seven (7) years after the Commencement Date”
  • lease: extension option 2 x 5 years
    “to extend the term of this Lease for two (2) successive periods of five (5) years each following the Initial Term”
  • lease: extension condition
    “Tenant, if it elects to exercise its option to renew, shall do so by written notice delivered to Landlord at least nine (9) months prior to the date or expiration of the then current term”
  • lease: use restriction
    “Premises shall be used for the following, but for no other purpose: operation of a blockchain data processing software and hardware center (Data Center), office use related to the Data Center, and a technology repair facility”
  • lease: condition excavation restriction
    “Tenant shall not construct, drill, core, excavate, or disturb the subsurface of the Premises, including without limitation any buildings within the Premises, without the prior written consent of Landlord”
  • lease: condition permits
    “This Lease is contingent on Tenant obtaining, at its own cost and expense, all permits, licenses and consents necessary for its Use of the Premises”
  • lease: taxes
    “Tenant shall, as additional rent, pay and discharge punctually when billed 100 percent (Tenant's Share), of all taxes, assessments, payments in lieu of tax which shall be charged, levied, laid, assessed, imposed upon the Premises”
  • lease: security letter of credit
    “Tenant shall provide to Landlord a clean, irrevocable stand-by letter of credit as security for the performance of the obligations of Tenant hereunder”
  • lease: termination casualty landlord
    “if the Buildings shall be so damaged or destroyed by fire or other cause as to require a reasonably estimated expenditure of more than 50% of the full insurable value of the Buildings, then Landlord may terminate this Lease”
  • lease: termination casualty tenant
    “Tenant may terminate this Lease by notice to Landlord, if there are two (2) years or less remaining on Tenant's Initial Term at the time of the damage or destruction”
  • lease: termination condemnation
    “In the event that the whole of the Premises shall be lawfully condemned or otherwise taken in any manner for any public use, this Lease and the Term and estate hereby granted shall forthwith cease and terminate”
  • lease: termination bankruptcy
    “whenever a permanent receiver of Tenant of or for the property of Tenant shall be appointed, then, Landlord may give Tenant a notice of intention to end the Term of this Lease at the expiration of thirty (30) days”
  • lease: termination default
    “whenever Tenant shall default in the payment of any installment of Fixed Rent for more than ten (10) days after the first day upon which the respective item of Fixed Rent is due”
  • lease: termination default notice
    “Landlord may give to Tenant a notice of intention to end the Term of this Lease at the expiration of three (3) business days from the date of the service of such notice of intention”
  • lease: holdover
    “if possession of the Premises is not surrendered to Landlord within two (2) days after the date of the expiration or sooner termination of the Term Tenant will pay Landlord as liquidated damages a sum equal to 1.5 times”
  • lease: finding
    “FINDING: No termination-for-convenience or early-exit right for either party appears in the filed lease; exits are event-driven (casualty, condemnation, default, insolvency). Rent amounts and the components of the 584 MW reservation are redacted in the filed exhibit”
  • Bitdeer's executed 16-year AI/HPC colocation lease with Volta (121 IT MW, about $4.7B base contract value, up to about $8.0B with the 8-year extension) is at the TYDAL, NORWAY campus - not Rockdale
    “Bitdeer announced a 16-Year AI/HPC Data Center Lease for its Tydal, Norway Campus, representing approximately $4.7 billion of total contract value over the initial base term”
  • land purchase: purchase 100000000 USD
    “Bitdeer has completed the fee simple acquisition of approximately 200 acres of greenfield property in Milam County, Texas for total consideration of approximately $100 million, paid in cash”
  • land purchase: purpose
    “The newly acquired parcel is near Bitdeer's existing Rockdale facility and is expected to support the Company's strategy to develop AI/HPC infrastructure alongside its existing operations”
  • Announced: Aug. 2018
    “In August 2018, Bitmain first announced that it would be investing about $500 million into the development of a new mining facility in Rockdale”
Permits and government (9)
  • air quality title v: issued (legacy - Alcoa smelter operations)
    “A FEDERAL OPERATING PERMIT IS HEREBY ISSUED TO Alcoa, Inc. AUTHORIZING THE OPERATION OF Rockdale Operations, Energy Primary Aluminum LOCATED AT Milam County, Texas Regulated Entity Number: RN100221472”
  • Authority check: the campus sits in unincorporated Milam County - no county zoning exists, and the county's only data-center instrument (Chapter 312 abatement) has never been used for Bitdeer. Land-use control runs throu
    “designation of certain property in unincorporated Milam County as a Reinvestment Zone”
  • reinvestment zone guard: designated Dec. 8, 2025 - NOT this campus
    “Conduct a public hearing on the matter of the proposed designation of certain property in unincorporated Milam County as a Reinvestment Zone under Subchapter C, Chapter 312”
  • Milam County Commissioners Court: Agenda searched for Bitdeer / Dory Creek, LLC business: NONE. Item 8: First Addendum to the Tax Abatement Agreement with Milam County DC, LLC. Items 9-12: public hearings and action on d
    “approval of a Tax Abatement Agreement between Milam County, Texas and Riot Rockdale, LLC”
  • Site registry TCEQ: The former Alcoa Rockdale smelter site carries legacy TCEQ records under Alcoa (Regulated Entity RN100221472); no TCEQ record in Bitdeer's own name was found in the Permit Search Portal - the keyword
    “PSP keyword 'Bitdeer' returned 22 records, all fuzzy name matches (Bittner Trucking, Bitler batteries and others)”
  • Current target date: not stated
    “Rockdale, Texas 179 In planning Crypto Estimate 2026”
  • air quality search: search - no Bitdeer record located
    “A FEDERAL OPERATING PERMIT IS HEREBY ISSUED TO Alcoa, Inc. AUTHORIZING THE OPERATION OF Rockdale Operations, Energy / Primary Aluminum, LOCATED AT Milam County, Texas.”
  • PUCT adopted 16 TAC 25.194 (Project 58481; adopted Sep 18, 2026, effective Oct 8, 2026) under SB 6: new or expanded ERCOT interconnections of 75 MW or more face a $100,000 study fee, $50,000 per MW in security and milest
    “The rule applies to a large load customer that has not energized by the effective date and seeks a new interconnection of 75 MW or more at a single site”
  • The Governor's Sep 21, 2026 directive paused TCEQ data-center environmental permitting pending ERCOT's Batch Zero review (ERCOT eligibility and community-impact reports due Dec 10, 2026; TCEQ compliance update due Oct 19
    “The directive changes TCEQ's current administrative posture, but does not amend statutes and rules governing individual TCEQ programs”
Site and other (5)
  • County: Milam County, TX (unincorporated; FIPS 48331)
    “designation of certain property in unincorporated Milam County as a Reinvestment Zone under Subchapter C, Chapter 312”
  • Stage: operating
    “Rockdale, TX 563 Online Crypto to Colocation / AI Cloud In active evaluation of AI transition”
  • Bitdeer's 6-K infrastructure summaries (Feb, May and Aug 2026) carry Rockdale's planned usage as 'Crypto to Colocation / AI Cloud' with the construction update 'In active evaluation of AI transition.' No tenant, lease, c
    “Rockdale, TX 563 Online Crypto to Colocation / AI Cloud In active evaluation of AI transition”
  • Address: 4069 Charles Martin Hall Rd, Rockdale, TX 76567
    “Location: 4069 Charles Martin Hall Rd, Rockdale, TX 76567”
  • Site history: Former Alcoa Rockdale aluminum smelter (curtailed 2008, closed 2017); Bitdeer datacenter on the site under lease since Jun 2018
    “The Alcoa smelter facility curtailed operations in 2008 and fully closed the site in 2017”