AEP, SoftBank Ink Deal with US DOE for 10 GW Data Center Power

The United States Department of Energy (DOE) has agreed on a public-private partnership that allows American Electric Power Co (AEP) and a consortium led by Japan's Softbank Group Corp to build 10 gigawatts (GW) of power generation including 9.2 GW from natural gas on DOE land.

The new capacity will serve a 10-GW data center planned to rise at the site of a former gaseous diffusion plant in Pike County, Ohio, AEP said in a press release.

AEP will build a 765-kilovolt transmission infrastructure with $4.2 billion in commitment from Softbank's SB Energy, AEP said.

"Initial transmission line route planning is underway and AEP Ohio is preparing to engage with community members and landowners to solicit feedback", AEP said.

AEP Ohio president Marc Reitter said, "Ohio is experiencing some of the fastest electricity demand growth in the nation, driven by data centers".

"The new transmission facilities are essential to powering this project and will unlock billions of dollars in regional investment", Reitter added.

The partnership is part of the U.S.-Japan Strategic Trade and Investment Agreement, which includes $33.3 billion in Japanese funding for 9.2 GW of new gas power capacity in the U.S., DOE said separately.

"This project complies with President Trump’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge, which protects ratepayers from paying for energy infrastructure improvements needed to power the ongoing technological boom", DOE said.

"SB Energy has committed to making excess transmission and generation capacity available to the grid", DOE said.

Concurrently SoftBank launched a consortium for the 9.2 GW gas portion, with potential participation from 21 funding partners in Japan and the U.S.

On Japan's side are Fujikura Ltd, Hitachi Ltd, Mitsubishi Electric Corp, Mizuho Bank Ltd, MUFG Bank Ltd, Murata Manufacturing Co Ltd, Panasonic Holdings Corp, SoftBank Group Corp, Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp, TDK Corp and Toshiba Corp.

The prospective U.S. participants for the Portsmouth Consortium are Bechtel Global Corp, Carrier Global Corp, Citi, GE Vernova Inc, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Kiewit Corp, Kinder Morgan Inc and
Morgan Stanley.

The 10-GW partnership was announced in conjunction with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's visit to Washington, during which Japan and the U.S. announced more projects under their Strategic Trade and Investment Agreement.

The newly announced projects include small modular reactors to be built by GE Vernova in Alabama and Tennessee at an estimated investment of up to $40 billion, as well as gas generation facilities in Pennsylvania and Texas worth up to $17 billion and up to $16 billion respectively.

"The two governments intend to further work together faithfully and swiftly on the details of these vital projects in a coordinated manner, in line with the memorandum of understanding dated September 4, 2025", a joint statement said. "The U.S. government is committed to expediting its necessary regulatory processes, subject to applicable laws".

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