Cipher Digital, the company behind the Colchis Data Center, would not put San Angelo on its map. This morning Cipher makes its first public appearance at Tom Green County Commissioners Court. It's item #8 on the agenda.
San Angelo Mayor Tom Thompson steered me to Cipher in June. Lots has happened in the interim. Cipher Digital received conditional base load designation for their project just outside city limits on City Farm Road (adjacent to the Skybox/Emergent Data Center site).
The Mayor feared this would happen. Months ago he wrote:
"ERCOT and AEP appear to be prioritizing the non-city property project for power allotments."
Wall Street took note of Cipher's ERCOT base load designation for Colchis.
Emerging from the shadows is Lee Bratcher, Cipher Digital’s head of policy and government affairs. He of the silver tongue will likely be effusive in his praise of local collaboration and extoll the virtues of their Colchis site.
Expect no real details. This is the beginning of an effort to obtain public subsidies, significant public subsidies. Tom Green County has been very generous with tax abatements for prior solar/energy project. The State of Texas has a giant pocketbook for economic development. TechGods have tapped that before and will do so again.
Cipher Digital is a former bitcoin mining company that is repurposing everything for AI. The public is not supportive of handouts to companies chasing obscene wealth at their expense. Cipher just needs to convince a majority of Commissioners and that process begins today.
Update: The silver tongue is flowing for those watching Commissioners' Court live.
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