Galaxy Helios Campus Data Center — Afton, TX · Ask the Grid

Overview

Campus power: 526 MW; Contracted Power · Contracted
Status: Expanding; Construction started Jul 2021
Facility size: 1,225,124 sq ft; 4 reported buildings · Campus
Project cost: $3.5B; Estimated construction cost in the cited project filing.
Build window: Jul 2021–Jul 6, 2026; Original Phase 1 was Argo’s Bitcoin-mining facility. It was energized on May 5, 2022 and commenced mining operations. Galaxy later retrofitted the approximately 126,000-square-foot facility for AI/HPC use, delivering approximately 200 MW of gross power and 133 MW of critical IT load to CoreWeave.
Compute profile: Hyperscale · AI HPC; AI training · AI inference

Project scope: Galaxy Helios is a multi-phase conversion and expansion of Argo Blockchain’s former Bitcoin-mining facility into an AI/HPC data-center campus. The original facility began construction in July 2021, energized Phase 1 and commenced mining operations on May 5, 2022.
Power and grid: CoreWeave committed critical IT load across Phases I through III under long-term leases.
Compute role: Galaxy is operating Helios as a revenue-generating, hyperscale AI/HPC campus. Phase I was delivered in 2026, providing approximately 200 MW of gross power and 133 MW of critical IT load to CoreWeave under a 15-year lease; additional phases are under construction.
Cooling and environment: Industrial-grade cooling systems originally built for high-density bitcoin-mining operations are being adapted and upgraded for AI workloads. Galaxy describes Helios as designed for high-density AI/HPC workloads, with slated rack densities of 130–140 kW, but does not publicly specify the exact Helios cooling medium or a quantified cooling-water demand. TCEQ authorized emissions for the site’s 121 diesel generators: 1.20 tons per year VOC, 98.68 tons per year NOx, 20.30 tons per year CO, 2.08 tons per year PM, 4.48 tons per year SO2, and 0.35 tons per year HAPs.

Phase I / original Helios facility

Original Phase 1 was Argo’s Bitcoin-mining facility. It was energized on May 5, 2022 and commenced mining operations. Galaxy later retrofitted the approximately 126,000-square-foot facility for AI/HPC use, delivering approximately 200 MW of gross power and 133 MW of critical IT load to CoreWeave.

Phase II / Helios 2–4

Phase II is a greenfield AI/HPC build providing an additional 260 MW of critical IT load. Civil and structural work was underway by July 2026. Public-record reporting identified three permitted buildings near the original facility: Helios 2, Helios 3, and Helios 4. Reported building sizes were 199,124 square feet for one building and nearly 350,000 square feet each for the other two.

Phase III

CoreWeave’s final option added 133 MW of critical IT load. Across Phases I–III, CoreWeave committed to 526 MW of critical IT load, corresponding to the full 800 MW of gross power then approved and contracted at Helios.

Power and grid

Capacity	Basis	Status	Scope	As of
200 MW	Campus Gross Power	Energized	Phase I	2026-07-06
Phase I gross power delivered to the campus and CoreWeave.
133 MW	Critical IT Load	Operating	Phase I	2026-07-06
Phase I critical IT load delivered to CoreWeave and generating revenue.
260 MW	Critical IT Load	Under Construction	Phase II	2026-07-06
Critical IT capacity under greenfield construction for Phase II; data-hall deliveries were expected to begin in the first half of 2027.
526 MW	Contracted Power	Contracted	Phases I-III	2026-07-06
CoreWeave committed critical IT load across Phases I through III under long-term leases.
800 MW	Campus Gross Power	Contracted	Phases I-III	2026-07-06
Full gross power currently approved and contracted at Helios across Phases I through III.
830 MW	Interconnection Request	Approved	Campus	2026-01-15
Additional computing demand approved by ERCOT after completion of the Large Load Interconnection Study; Galaxy executed an AEP Texas service agreement for this additional capacity.
1,630 MW	Utility Service	Approved	Campus	2026-07-06
Total campus power capacity reported as approximately 1.63 GW, representing total approved capacity after the additional 830 MW approval.

Utility: AEP Texas Inc.
Balancing authority: ERCOT
ISO / RTO: ERCOT
Redundancy: 100% uninterruptible power supply with distributed-redundant and block-redundant electrical topologies.
Backup generation: On-site backup diesel generators are reported with fuel reserves sufficient for a minimum of 24 hours of runtime; generator capacity was not identified.

Facility and development

IT floor area (sq ft): 126,000
Gross floor area (sq ft): 1,225,124
Site area (acres): 2,200
Buildings: 4
Construction: Galaxy Helios is a multi-phase conversion and expansion of Argo Blockchain’s former Bitcoin-mining facility into an AI/HPC data-center campus. The original facility began construction in July 2021, energized Phase 1 and commenced mining operations on May 5, 2022. Galaxy acquired the facility in December 2022. Galaxy’s AI retrofit delivered approximately 200 MW of gross power, including 133 MW of critical IT load, in 2026; Phase II greenfield construction is underway, with data-hall deliveries expected in the first half of 2027. Three additional Phase II buildings—Helios 2, 3, and 4—were reported as permitted in March 2026.
Land transaction: Galaxy acquired Argo Blockchain’s Helios facility in Dickens County, Texas, for $65 million; the transaction was announced and expected to close on December 28, 2022. The transaction was a facility acquisition, not a separately documented land-only purchase.
Facility class: Hyperscale · AI HPC · Crypto Mining
Workloads: AI training · AI inference · high-performance computing
Rack density (kW): 135
Cooling systems: Industrial-grade cooling systems originally built for high-density bitcoin-mining operations are being adapted and upgraded for AI workloads. · Galaxy describes Helios as designed for high-density AI/HPC workloads, with slated rack densities of 130–140 kW, but does not publicly specify the exact Helios cooling medium or a quantified cooling-water demand.
Fiber and connectivity: Low-latency, multi-terabit connectivity is designed for the campus, with round-trip latency to Dallas below 15 milliseconds. Galaxy also describes dedicated fiber with 10–15 ms latency and two diverse paths designed for N+1 redundancy.
Operating context: Galaxy is operating Helios as a revenue-generating, hyperscale AI/HPC campus. Phase I was delivered in 2026, providing approximately 200 MW of gross power and 133 MW of critical IT load to CoreWeave under a 15-year lease; additional phases are under construction. The site is being transitioned from its original bitcoin-mining use to AI/HPC hosting.
Air permits: TCEQ Electric Generating Units Air Quality Standard Permit Registration No. 179090 for Galaxy Helios I, 984 County Road 112, Afton, Dickens County; effective authorization identified by TCEQ on May 21, 2025 and listed with an expiration date of March 7, 2035. · The authorization covers construction-related emissions revisions for 120 diesel generators and one additional generator, including emergency and chiller generator sources.
Emissions: TCEQ Standard Permit Registration No. 179090 authorizes emissions associated with revising 120 diesel generators and adding one generator at Galaxy Helios I, for a total of 121 generators. The authorized maximum annual emissions are 1.20 tons VOC, 98.68 tons NOx, 20.30 tons CO, 2.08 tons PM, 4.48 tons SO2, and 0.35 tons HAPs. The generators are certified not to exceed 7,865 combined operating hours per year.
Environmental commitments: Galaxy states that it is committed to the local community and to increasing quality of life in Spur through special projects and additional job creation. · Galaxy states that Helios is intended to provide skilled, high-paying employment and strengthen local communities. · The TCEQ air authorization requires compliance with applicable TCEQ and U.S. EPA rules and annual electronic reporting of the operational status of each relevant standard-permit registration.
Environmental impacts: TCEQ authorized emissions for the site’s 121 diesel generators: 1.20 tons per year VOC, 98.68 tons per year NOx, 20.30 tons per year CO, 2.08 tons per year PM, 4.48 tons per year SO2, and 0.35 tons per year HAPs. · The authorized generator fleet includes south and north emergency generators, chiller emergency generators, and one water-treatment generator. · Galaxy’s public materials identify access to water as an important input for AI/HPC data centers, but do not establish the Helios campus’s water source or consumption.
Project cost (USD): 3,500,000,000
Incentives (USD): 20,500,000
Tax abatements: Dickens County reported a $20.5 million PILOT/tax-abatement arrangement for Galaxy’s Helios development: $18.5 million in PILOT funding plus a separate $2 million housing payment, described as offsetting anticipated property taxes over ten years. The reported initial payment and housing payment were due October 1, 2026.
Utility agreements: Galaxy executed a service agreement with AEP Texas Inc. for the additional 830 MW approved by ERCOT. · Wind Energy Transmission Texas, LLC is identified as Galaxy’s transmission interconnection provider and facilitated the Large Load Interconnection Studies. · Helios is reported as connected to the South Plains Electric Cooperative grid.
Permits and dockets: Public records reported three Phase 2 permits for Helios 2, Helios 3, and Helios 4 near the initial facility off County Road 112; reported estimated project values were $900 million for Helios 2 and $1.3 billion each for Helios 3 and Helios 4. · ERCOT Large Load Interconnection Study approval for an additional 830 MW at Helios, announced January 15, 2026; the release states that the approval followed ERCOT review of steady-state and stability study elements. · The PUCT filing at Control Number 59029, Item 60, concerns proposed 765-kV transmission-line CCN proceedings in Control Nos. 58559–58562 and discusses large-load/data-center demand, but the retrieved record does not establish that any one of those CCN dockets is a Helios-specific permit.
Transactions: Galaxy agreed in December 2022 to acquire the Helios bitcoin-mining facility and related operations from Argo Blockchain for approximately $65 million. · In connection with the acquisition, Galaxy agreed to provide Argo a $35 million senior-secured loan, while Argo entered a two-year hosting agreement for its mining machines at Helios. · Galaxy and CoreWeave entered a 15-year lease arrangement for Helios AI/HPC capacity. CoreWeave’s Phase I commitment was approximately 133 MW of critical IT load; a later Phase II option added approximately 260 MW, and CoreWeave ultimately committed to the campus’s then-approved 800 MW gross capacity. · Galaxy closed a $1.4 billion project-financing facility in August 2025 to fund the initial Helios retrofit and expansion; Galaxy supplied a $350 million equity requirement and the debt facility covered the remaining construction costs for that phase. · Galaxy Helios Data Centers II priced $3.507 billion of senior secured notes in July 2026 to fund part of a new Dickens County data-center project; the source states that total project cost was not disclosed.
Public hearings: The Dickens County commissioners’ April 14, 2025 agenda included discussion of a tax-abatement application for Galaxy Helios I, LLC’s data-center project. · The Texas Spur reported that Dickens County commissioners approved tax abatements for Galaxy Helios II and Galaxy Helios III at their May 11, 2026 meeting. · The Texas Spur reported a July 28 Dickens County commissioners session at which the county and Galaxy signed the PILOT and housing agreement; the retrieved article has inconsistent date metadata, so the year should be verified against county minutes.
Community benefits: Galaxy reports that Helios is one of Dickens County’s top employers and provides competitive salaries and benefits. · Galaxy said it would retain the approximately 40-person Helios team and support community commitments inherited from Argo. · The community commitments include refurbishing Spur’s historic public swimming pool. · Galaxy’s Community Committee works with local leaders on education programs and internship opportunities. · Dickens County and Galaxy agreed to $18.5 million in PILOT payments plus an additional $2 million for local housing over ten years. · Reported community programs include support for first responders, senior citizens, youth services and education, arts, culture, historic preservation, library programming, and local events. · County officials and local reporting associate the Helios/CoreWeave development with improved housing availability and more than 100 permanent Helios jobs, with CoreWeave potentially adding 50 or more jobs.
Petitions: No site-specific petition concerning Galaxy Helios was identified in the reviewed evidence.
Opposition or litigation: No site-specific organized opposition, petition, or litigation concerning Galaxy Helios was identified in the reviewed evidence. · A 2022 regional report said local residents did not oppose the new businesses, although residents had questions about cryptocurrency and its effects. · Reported concerns from Abernathy residents were excluded because they concern a different proposed data-center project, not the Helios site.

Identity and campus: Galaxy Helios Campus
Also reported as Argo Data Center, Helios Data Center, Helios facility, Galaxy Helios.
Grid record: AEP Texas Inc. · ERCOT
Regulatory record: Public records reported three Phase 2 permits for Helios 2, Helios 3, and Helios 4 near the initial facility off County Road 112; reported estimated project values were $900 million for Helios 2 and $1.3 billion each for Helios 3 and Helios 4. · ERCOT Large Load Interconnection Study approval for an additional 830 MW at Helios, announced January 15, 2026; the release states that the approval followed ERCOT review of steady-state and stability study elements. · The PUCT filing at Control Number 59029, Item 60, concerns proposed 765-kV transmission-line CCN proceedings in Control Nos. 58559–58562 and discusses large-load/data-center demand, but the retrieved record does not establish that any one of those CCN dockets is a Helios-specific permit.
Galaxy’s Helios campus in Dickens County received ERCOT approval for an additional 830 MW after completion of a Large Load Interconnection Study, bringing approved and utility-contracted capacity above 1.6 GW. The project also has reported Phase 2 building permits and a Dickens County PILOT/tax-abatement agreement. Phase I delivered approximately 200 MW gross power and 133 MW critical IT load to CoreWeave in 2026.

Argo Blockchain sells Dickens County Helios plant to Galaxy in $100M deal — Reports Argo’s sale of the Helios facility to Galaxy and describes staff retention and continuing community commitments, including the Spur swimming-pool project.

$20.5M tax abatement paves way for Galaxy growth in Dickens County — Reports a Dickens County PILOT agreement with Galaxy, a $2 million housing allocation, community programs, and expected employment and housing effects associated with Helios.

West Texas Helios facility leased to Nvidia-backed CrowdWeave — Reports that the Dickens County cryptocurrency facility formerly associated with Argo was transitioning into an AI-oriented data-center operation through a CoreWeave agreement.

Massive $3.5 billion expansion planned at AI data center in Dickens County — Reports permits for Helios 2, Helios 3, and Helios 4 near the initial County Road 112 facility and quotes Galaxy on the campus’s economic impact.

Cryptocurrency miners line up to come to Texas, and rural counties are welcoming them — Reports early local reaction to cryptocurrency-mining development in Afton and Dickens County, stating that residents did not oppose the businesses but had questions about cryptocurrency and its effects.

Galaxy Helios Campus