Cipher Digital jumps 13%, but grid status is no green light

Cipher Digital (NASDAQ:CIFR) shares jumped 13% Wednesday after the company secured conditional grid classifications for 3.2 gigawatts of Texas data-center capacity, though the designations stop short of authorizing power connections. The company first disclosed the 3.2-gigawatt total last week, then identified the individual sites in a breakdown posted on X on Tuesday. After the conclusion of follow-up discussions with our transmission service providers, Cipher has received the following designations: Conditional Base Load · Stingray (100 MW) · Colchis (1 GW) Conditional Studied Load · Mikeska (500 MW, PCLR qualified) · Apollo (900 MW, PCLR… Under the Electric Reliability Council of Texas’s Batch Zero procedure, Cipher said 1.1 gigawatts received conditional base-load status, comprising Stingray’s 100 megawatts and Colchis’s one gigawatt. That status means ERCOT’s grid study treats the capacity as established, while another 2.1 gigawatts remain under conditional study. The capacity under study comprises Mikeska’s 500 megawatts, Apollo’s 900 megawatts, Stingray Phase II’s 200 megawatts and McLennan’s 500 megawatts. These classifications follow Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s August order to audit data-center projects involved in ERCOT’s interconnection process. Separately, Cipher, Fluidstack and Anthropic (Unlisted (US):ANTHRO) pledged $10 million through the Colorado City Water Infrastructure Foundation to restore and expand Colorado City’s water system after this summer’s shortages. For its grid projects, Cipher said it will release final designations in December following the audit. Continue reading