New York, January 12, 2026, 14:05 EST — Regular session
- Nebius shares climbed roughly 10% during Monday’s afternoon session
- A report detailed plans for an 800-megawatt AI data center campus close to Kansas City
- Investors are focused on local approvals and how quickly power capacity is coming online
Nebius Group N.V. shares surged roughly 10% Monday following reports that the AI infrastructure company plans to build an 800-megawatt data center campus near Kansas City, Missouri. The stock climbed 10.2% to $107.87 in afternoon trading, up from Friday’s close of $97.93.
This shift comes in a market where power remains the bottleneck for artificial intelligence. Chips are available, but snapping up an additional 800 megawatts of electricity—and the necessary grid hookups—is far from simple.
Nebius has been locking down major, long-term deals and then hustling to secure the infrastructure—land, power, and facilities—needed to support them. “We should be ready (for when) the winter will come,” co-founder Roman Chernin told Reuters in December, emphasizing that the company is focusing on high-margin services to weather any downturn. Reuters
Data Center Dynamics reports the proposed site is in Independence, Missouri, where the city envisions a 2.5 million-square-foot campus at Eastgate Commerce Center, potentially stretching across 10 buildings. The project demands at least 800 megawatts of power. Plans include a new privately funded power facility built in phases — starting with a 250-megawatt segment aimed for completion by October 2027, followed by a larger expansion by late 2029.
Independence’s project FAQ reveals plans for a campus spanning up to 10 buildings across about 400 acres, with construction slated to start in early 2026. City officials anticipate tens of millions in tax revenue by 2028. The estimate for land acquisition and site/building improvements comes to $6.6 billion.
The local calendar shows a Nebius open house scheduled for Monday, followed by a Planning Commission meeting on Tuesday. Traders are watching closely, as upcoming headlines will probably focus on zoning, permits, and whether the project moves forward smoothly.
Nebius has pitched itself as the middle ground between hyperscalers—the massive cloud providers—and customers hunting for rare, AI-ready computing power. If the Kansas City-area project goes ahead, it would clearly show Nebius’s readiness to invest heavily in securing large-scale U.S. capacity.
The downside scenario is well known: these projects stretch over years, and delays are common. Nebius has poured money into GPUs—the chips powering AI training and operations—along with land and energy. Reuters reported that the company’s capital expenditures jumped sharply in 2025, even as it recorded quarterly losses.
Another risk lies in the power build-out—it’s a project within the larger project. Should the generation plan or grid connections slip, the data center schedule could quickly shift from a growth opportunity into a cash drain.
Investors are now eyeing Independence City Hall, where the Planning Commission will review the project on Jan. 13. The proposal is slated for the full City Council agenda a week later, on Jan. 20, according to local outlet KSHB.
