New York, Jan 16, 2026, 12:04 PM ET — Regular session
Riot Platforms (RIOT) shares surged Friday following news that the bitcoin miner secured a long-term data-center lease with Advanced Micro Devices and acquired the land beneath a crucial Texas location. The stock climbed 12.6% to $18.65.
The deal is significant as Riot aims to grow revenue streams beyond bitcoin mining, which can be volatile due to bitcoin’s price fluctuations and shifts in mining “difficulty”—the network rule that ramps up the computing power required to mine new coins.
It also throws a big-name customer into a long-running debate among public miners: can they leverage power access and real estate to secure data-center deals as AI computing puts pressure on the U.S. grid?
Riot said it spent $96 million to buy 200 acres in Milam County, Texas, funding the deal by offloading roughly 1,080 bitcoin from its holdings. The company also announced that AMD inked a 10-year lease and services contract for a data center, kicking off with 25 megawatts of “critical IT load”—a metric for the power available to run servers. Delivery starts in January and should wrap up by May. GlobeNewswire
Riot said AMD could scale up to 200 MW at the Rockdale site by exercising an option for an extra 75 MW and holding a right of first refusal on another 100 MW. The company also plans to eventually convert the full 700 MW of gross power capacity at Rockdale for data-center tenants. Riot now controls 1.7 gigawatts of approved power capacity across two Texas locations. TheMinerMag
The initial 25 MW contract is projected to generate roughly $311 million in revenue over its first decade, with extension options potentially pushing that figure close to $1 billion, the company said. Riot plans to invest about $90 million to retrofit this initial deployment and anticipates average net operating income of around $25 million per year from the lease. Barron’s
“This partnership validates Riot’s infrastructure,” CEO Jason Les stated. AMD CIO Hasmukh Ranjan emphasized the chipmaker requires partners who can “match our pace and scale.” Riot Platforms
Bitcoin slipped roughly 2% to hover around $94,771, while RIOT climbed following a company-specific announcement.
Shares of other U.S.-listed miners climbed, with Marathon Digital gaining roughly 6.3% and CleanSpark jumping about 7.7%. AMD edged up around 1.9%.
Analysts are now viewing the announcement as proof that Riot can generate revenue from its Texas operations beyond just self-mining. On Friday, BTIG reaffirmed its buy rating and set a $28 price target, highlighting growth opportunities linked to the AMD deal and Riot’s standalone Corsicana facility. Investing.com
The trade carries a broad spectrum of risks. Retrofits on data centers often face delays and budget overruns, while AMD isn’t obligated to exercise its expansion options. Riot, on the other hand, stays vulnerable to fluctuations in bitcoin prices and energy expenses tied to its mining operations.
Investors will be tracking progress on Riot’s phased delivery, set to start in January, along with the company’s ability to meet its May completion goal. Attention will also focus on whether Riot can secure follow-on leases that suggest the Texas buildout can be scaled up.
