Shares of Riot Platforms rose about 12% after the company disclosed a land acquisition and a long-term lease that advance its move into AI and high-performance computing data centers. Riot bought 200 acres underlying its Rockdale site in Milam County, Texas, for $96 million, and said the purchase was funded entirely by selling about 1,080 bitcoin from its balance sheet. At the same time, the company announced a data center lease with AMD that commits Riot to deliver critical IT load capacity and establishes a hyperscale tenant at Rockdale. The combined transactions mark a clear shift in Riot’s use of its Texas assets.
Riot Platforms Stock Surge and Land Acquisition
The 200-acre fee-simple purchase replaces a prior ground lease and gives Riot full ownership of the Rockdale property, which the company says unlocks the site for large-scale data center development. Riot funded the transaction through bitcoin sales, part of a broader program of asset liquidations that included a record monthly net sale of about 1,820 BTC in December 2025 after producing 460 BTC during that month. For more background on Riot’s recent coin sales and the reasons behind them, see Riot bitcoin sales December 2025.
Details of the AMD Lease Agreement
Riot signed a data center lease and services agreement with Advanced Micro Devices that begins with a phased delivery of 25 megawatts (MW) of critical IT load capacity. The initial lease term is 10 years and the company expects it to generate about $311 million in contract revenue, with three five‑year extension options that could raise total contract value to roughly $1 billion if fully exercised. AMD also has the option to expand by an additional 75 MW and a right of first refusal on another 100 MW, which would bring its potential footprint at Rockdale to 200 MW.
The initial deployment will lean on retrofitting existing buildings at Rockdale, with estimated capital expenditures for the AMD lease of $89.8 million and an expected contribution of roughly $25 million in net operating income per year. Riot described the Rockdale site as having a 700 MW grid interconnection along with dedicated water and fiber connectivity, and said it intends to convert available power capacity to data center tenants over time.
Riot’s Strategic Shift to AI and HPC
Chief executive Jason Les said the AMD lease validates Riot’s infrastructure and development capabilities and represents a turning point as the company repurposes bitcoin mining assets for AI and high-performance computing workloads. With the Rockdale acquisition, Riot now owns and manages more than 1,100 acres and 1.7 gigawatts of fully approved power capacity across its Rockdale and Corsicana sites, positioned within the Texas Triangle region. This move follows a broader trend among some publicly listed miners to diversify revenue by leasing power and facilities to AI and cloud customers, a topic explored in Riot bitcoin sale analysis.
Financial and Operational Highlights
- Land acquisition: 200 acres at Rockdale for $96 million, funded by sale of ~1,080 BTC.
- AMD lease: 25 MW initial IT load, 10‑year term, about $311 million in expected contract revenue and options that could expand value toward $1 billion.
- Estimated initial capex for the AMD deployment: $89.8 million, and projected average net operating income of $25 million per year.
- Site capacity and infrastructure: Rockdale has a 700 MW grid interconnection, and Riot manages over 1,100 acres and 1.7 GW across two Texas sites.
Почему это важно
Если вы майните в России с небольшим пулом машин, прямые изменения от этой сделки будут минимальны, но суть важна для всей отрасли: крупные майнеры всё чаще переориентируют мощности и площадки на аренду для AI‑клиентов. Riot прямо заявляет о переводе части мощности в дата‑центры, что отражает более широкую тенденцию диверсификации доходов у публичных майнеров из‑за давления на майнинг‑маржинальность.
Что делать?
- Мониторьте объявления о распределении сетевой и локальной мощности: следите за тем, какие площадки в вашем регионе переоборудуются под дата‑центры, чтобы оценить возможное влияние на доступность и цену электроэнергии.
- Оценивайте варианты диверсификации дохода: рассматривайте аренду вычислительной мощности или сотрудничество с локальными дата‑центрами, если у вас есть свободные ресурсы.
- Планируйте бюджет и ликвидность: держите резерв для покрытия операционных расходов на случай колебаний доходности майнинга или необходимости обновления оборудования для новых задач.
