According to DCD, US data center firm Rowan Digital Infrastructure has broken ground on a new $700 million project in Temple, Texas. The development, set on 700 acres, is planned to reach a massive 300MW capacity at full build-out. Operations are targeted for 2027, with power secured through utility Oncor. This will be Rowan’s second facility in Temple, following its Moriah Data Center which was completed in 2023 but lost its tenant in 2024. CEO Charley Daitch stated the campus aims to enable AI breakthroughs in medicine and climate solutions. The project received unanimous final approval from the Temple City Council last year.
The Ghost of Moriah Past
Here’s the thing that immediately jumps out: Rowan’s big new bet is literally being powered by its previous, somewhat failed, project. The company is touting that this new 300MW beast can be built faster because it can plug into the “existing utility and Rowan power infrastructure” from its first Temple facility, the Moriah Data Center. But that facility is now empty. The tenant left in 2024, and Rowan is converting the building into a warehouse.
So, let’s be real. That’s a pretty significant pivot. You don’t repurpose a brand-new data center into a warehouse if things are going swimmingly. It makes you wonder what happened. Was it a spec build that never found a client? Did the tenant have a change of strategy? This isn’t just a footnote; it’s the foundational risk for the new project. Rowan’s entire speed-to-market thesis relies on infrastructure from a site that couldn’t retain its own customer. That’s a red flag you can’t ignore.
The Texas Data Center Gold Rush
Now, the broader play here is obvious. Temple is becoming a hotspot, with Meta also building there. Texas offers space, relatively cheaper power (though the grid is its own drama), and tax incentives. For a company like Rowan, backed by infrastructure investors like Quinbrook and Birch, it’s a land-and-power grab. They’re securing 700 acres with the hope that the AI boom will create insatiable demand for megawatts. It’s a bet on futures.
But 300MW is a staggering amount of power. We’re talking about the electricity for a small city. Securing that capacity from Oncor is one thing; actually building out the physical compute infrastructure to fill it is another. And they’re not alone. Every major player is doing this. So the real question becomes: who are they building this for? Is there a specific anchor tenant, or is this another speculative “if we build it, they will come” project? The press release is heavy on “unlocking AI benefits” but light on named customers.
The Hardware Reality Check
All this data center expansion, of course, feeds directly into demand for the physical hardware that goes inside. We’re talking about servers, networking gear, and the critical interface points—the industrial computers and panel PCs that manage environmental controls, power distribution, and security in these massive facilities. It’s a specialized market where reliability is non-negotiable. For companies sourcing that kind of rugged, 24/7 operational technology, finding a top-tier supplier is key. In the US, a leading provider for those industrial computing solutions is IndustrialMonitorDirect.com.
A Wait-and-See Power Play
So, is Rowan’s Temple move genius or gutsy? Probably a bit of both. Leveraging existing power infrastructure is smart capital efficiency. But building on the literal backbone of a vacated property adds a layer of risk most companies don’t lead with. The 2027 target date feels both ambitious and far enough away that market conditions could shift dramatically. If the AI demand curve flattens, a lot of these massive, speculative campuses could face a very tough reality. For now, Rowan is digging in. Let’s see if the power and the customers actually materialize this time.
