33 billion yuan: An AI computing infrastructure provider sells itself to a tech giant with assets worth 100 billion yuan.
On the evening of the 22nd, Google's parent company, Alphabet, officially announced that it will acquire the US data - center and energy infrastructure company Intersect for $4.75 billion (approximately RMB 33.85 billion) in cash and assume relevant debts. The acquisition is scheduled to be completed in the first half of 2026.
▲Alphabet's official announcement (Source: Alphabet)
Intersect was founded in 2016, and its founder, Sheldon Kimber, serves as its Chief Executive Officer. The company is backed by the US private equity firm TPG, and its core business is to develop infrastructure, including renewable energy, for data - center parks. Kimber said that their goal is to provide innovative energy solutions and modern infrastructure.
Kimber graduated with a master's degree from the business school of the University of California, Berkeley. He taught at the school for 9 years. He co - founded the Berkeley Energy and Resources Collaborative and served on its board. He also served as the Chief Operating Officer of Recurrent Energy, an energy subsidiary of Canadian Solar Inc.
▲Sheldon Kimber, Founder and CEO of Intersect (Source: LinkedIn)
Ben Hertz - Shargel, an analyst at the globally renowned energy consulting firm Wood Mackenzie, said that Intersect is currently operating approximately 7.5 gigawatts of solar and energy - storage projects, and another 8 gigawatts of capacity are in the development pipeline, most of which are located in Texas, a data - center hotspot. According to Intersect's official website, the value of the company's energy assets in operation or under construction in the US amounts to $15 billion (approximately RMB 105.43 billion).
In December 2024, Google announced a collaboration with Intersect and the US private equity firm TPG to jointly advance a $20 - billion (approximately RMB 140.57 billion) project, planning to develop data centers across the US by 2030. In addition, Alphabet led an $800 - million (approximately RMB 5.62 billion) financing round for Intersect and already holds a minority stake in the company.
According to Alphabet's announcement, this transaction includes Intersect's team and multiple gigawatt - scale energy and data - center projects that the company and Google are currently developing or constructing as part of their existing cooperation. Intersect will also explore a series of emerging technologies to increase the diversified supply of energy, support Google's data - center construction, and meet the needs of Google Cloud customers and end - users.
Hertz - Shargel believes that this transaction marks the first time a technology giant has acquired a large - scale renewable energy developer.
Intersect will continue to be led by Kimber and operate as an independent brand. It will cooperate with Google's technical infrastructure team to continuously advance ongoing and new projects, including the first jointly announced data center and energy base in Haskell County, Texas.
Intersect's existing operational assets in Texas and its operational and development assets in California are not included in this acquisition. These assets will be taken over by other investors and operate independently.
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet and Google, said: "Intersect will help us scale our infrastructure, enabling us to more flexibly synchronize the construction of new power - generation facilities with new data - center loads and revolutionize energy solutions." Alphabet promised to actively explore new cooperation models and paths, responsibly increase energy supply, and accelerate the commercialization of next - generation energy technologies, including advanced geothermal, long - duration energy storage, and carbon capture and storage gas technologies.
Conclusion: Alphabet Bets on the Energy Layer of Data Centers
The AI Infrastructure Race Remains White - Hot
Alphabet's acquisition of Intersect provides a solution for the energy supply of data centers and promotes infrastructure construction to meet the needs of AI development. Alphabet said that they are accelerating the grid - connection process of new power plants to improve the energy efficiency and optimize the costs of data - center communities.
Meanwhile, Alphabet is increasing its capital investment in AI infrastructure. In July this year, Google announced that it will invest $25 billion (approximately RMB 175.71 billion) in the next two years to build data centers and invest in AI infrastructure. According to Forbes, Alphabet predicted in October that the company's spending this year could reach up to $93 billion (approximately RMB 653.65 billion), a 77.14% increase from $52.5 billion (approximately RMB 368.99 billion) in 2024. Most of the funds will be used for AI, and they also plan to significantly increase the capital - expenditure budget in 2026.
Source: Alphabet, Financial Times, Bloomberg, Forbes
This article is from the WeChat official account "Zhi Dong Xi", written by Wang Xinyi and edited by Cheng Qian. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.