Former BP CEO Bernard Looney Joins AI Data Center Startup Prometheus Hyperscale as Chairman

Former BP Oil CEO Joins AI Data Center Startup Prometheus Hyperscale - Oklo (NYSE:OKLO)

Prometheus plans to build a $10 billion flagship data center in Evanston, Wyoming and a strategic partnership with Oklo, Inc. Bernard Looney, former CEO of oil and gas giant BP plc, said on Sunday he will join AI data center start-up, Prometheus Hyperscale, as the chairman of the board of directors. The Details: Looney resigned from his position at BP last year after an investigation revealed he had not properly disclosed previous relationships with colleagues before becoming CEO. Looney is taking his more than 30 years of experience in the energy industry to the Wyoming-based start-up Prometheus Hyperscale. Looney told the New York Times in an interview he would be helping Prometheus attract AI hyperscalers such as Microsoft and Google in need of power and space for data centers. I'll be helping them with customers," he said. "I'll be helping them with investors. I'll be helping them with strategy." Read More: Rumble CEO Considers Bitcoin Investment, Engages Michael Saylor As Shares Rally Prometheus plans to build a $10 billion flagship data center in Evanston, Wyoming, which will be among the largest facilities of its kind in the world when completed -- the company estimates in 2025 or 2026. The company says the project encompasses a 12,000-acre ranch, including a dedicated 640-acre plot for data center facilities. The company secured an initial 120 MW of grid power through Rocky Mountain Power, with plans for an additional 120 MW, as well as a strategic partnership with Oklo Inc. OKLO a small-scale nuclear reactor company. Prometheus signed a non-binding letter of intent with Oklo in May, outlining its intent to enter into a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement. "As the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence increases, Oklo remains dedicated to providing clean, reliable and affordable energy solutions to meet the needs of our data center partners. Our partnership with Wyoming Hyperscale underscores our commitment to advancing sustainable energy practices and supporting high-efficiency operations within the data center industry," Jacob DeWitte, CEO of Oklo, said in the announcement in May. Combining the partnership with Oklo and its plans for incorporating a mix of wind, solar and gas power sources, Prometheus has an on-site generation goal of over 1 GW. Looney said in the interview that he aims to help Prometheus Hyperscale address what he called downsides of A.I., including potential in emissions. "We have to work on that," he said. Read Next: Bitcoin Could Reach $1 Million By 2037, Economist Says: 'Buy Of A Lifetime' Opportunity Photo: Courtesy of Prometheus Hyperscale Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

Former BP chief joins AI data center developer

Bernard Looney's experience with the multibillion-dollar projects that are common in the energy industry, as well as his past work with potential international investors like the oil producers in the Persian Gulf may be useful in his new role.Bernard Looney, a former CEO of BP, one of the world's largest energy companies, said Sunday that he would become chair of a data center startup in the United States, a move that comes amid a ravenous appetite for electricity to power the boom in artificial intelligence. The company, called Prometheus Hyperscale, plans to build a $10 billion data center on a 640-acre site in Evanston, Wyoming, carved out of the family ranch of the company's founder and CEO, Trenton Thornock. The hope is to attract companies like Amazon, Microsoft or Google with mushrooming needs for computer power, Looney said in an interview. Prometheus plans to expand in the United States and internationally, he added. "I'll be helping them with customers," he said. "I'll be helping them with investors. I'll be helping them with strategy." Looney, 54, left BP last year after acknowledging that he failed to properly disclose personal relationships with colleagues. The oil and gas industry may seem far removed from a startup aimed at serving the AI industry, but the two sectors have become increasingly intertwined. The huge arrays of computers needed for AI require staggering, and rapidly increasing, amounts of energy to keep them humming. Energy companies like BP already view large data service providers, known as hyperscalers, as important buyers of their energy. "Hyperscalers are going to be one of the bigger customers moving forward for energy," Murray Auchincloss, Looney's successor at BP, told analysts last month. Looney's experience with the multibillion-dollar projects that are common in the energy industry, as well as his past work with potential international investors like the oil producers in the Persian Gulf may be useful in his new role. In Looney's three years as CEO of BP, the company shook up its leadership as he announced plans to cut back oil and gas production while increasing investment in renewable energy sources like wind and solar. Some of these ambitions have since been scaled back as investors increasingly prefer profits from oil and gas to mixed results from renewable energy sources. But companies like Google prefer clean energy. "He is one of the folks in the world who is highly connected," Thornock said. "He has great credibility in the sustainability and energy space." Looney said he wanted to help Prometheus Hyperscale address what he called downsides of AI, including the concern that the fast-growing demand for electricity would lead to increases in emissions. "We have to work on that," he said. The Wyoming data center will be initially powered by wind and gas. There is also a possibility that nuclear energy will be used in the future through a partnership with Oklo, a startup led by Sam Altman, CEO of the ChatGPT maker OpenAI. Prometheus also will use what it says is a unique liquid cooling system to save large amounts of energy.

Former BP Chief Joins A.I. Data Center Developer

Bernard Looney will join Prometheus Hyperscale, a Wyoming start-up, to help it address the enormous energy needs of the artificial intelligence industry. Bernard Looney, the former chief executive of BP, one of the world's largest energy companies, said Sunday that he would become chairman of a data center start-up in the United States, a move that comes amid a ravenous appetite for electricity to power the boom in artificial intelligence. The company, called Prometheus Hyperscale, plans to build a $10 billion data center on a 640-acre site in Evanston, Wyo., carved out of the family ranch of the company's founder and chief executive, Trenton Thornock. The hope is to attract companies like Amazon, Microsoft or Google with mushrooming needs for computer power, Mr. Looney said in an interview. Prometheus plans to expand in the United States and internationally, he added. "I'll be helping them with customers," he said. "I'll be helping them with investors. I'll be helping them with strategy." Mr.Looney, 54, left BP last year after acknowledging that he failed to properly disclose personal relationships with colleagues. The oil and gas industry may seem far removed from a start-up aimed at serving the A.I. industry, but the two sectors have become increasingly intertwined. The huge arrays of computers needed for A.I. require staggering, and rapidly increasing, amounts of energy to keep them humming. Energy companies like BP already view large data service providers, known as hyperscalers, as important buyers of their energy. "Hyperscalers are going to be one of the bigger customers moving forward for energy," Murray Auchincloss, Mr. Looney's successor at BP, told analysts last month. Mr. Looney's experience with the multibillion-dollar projects that are common in the energy industry, as well as his past work with potential international investors like the oil producers in the Persian Gulf may be useful in his new role. In Mr. Looney's three years as chief executive of BP, the company shook up its leadership as he announced plans to cut back oil and gas production while increasing investment in renewable energy sources like wind and solar. Some of these ambitions have since been scaled back as investors increasingly prefer profits from oil and gas to mixed results from renewable energy sources. But companies like Google prefer clean energy. "He is one of the folks in the world who is highly connected," Mr. Thornock said. "He has great credibility in the sustainability and energy space." Mr. Looney said he wanted to help Prometheus Hyperscale address what he called downsides of A.I., including the concern that the fast-growing demand for electricity would lead to increases in emissions. "We have to work on that," he said. The Wyoming data center will be initially powered by wind and gas. There is also a possibility that nuclear energy will be used in the future through a partnership with Oklo, a start-up led by Sam Altman, chief executive of the ChatGPT maker OpenAI. Prometheus also will use what it says is a unique liquid cooling system to save large amounts of energy.

Bernard Looney to chair US start-up as he plans comeback from BP scandal

Former BP chief executive Bernard Looney is joining the board of a US-based data centre company as he seeks a comeback from a scandal last year that cost him the top job at the oil major. The Irish executive told the Financial Times he has been appointed chair of Prometheus Hyperscale, a start-up with plans to build a $10bn data centre in Evanston, Wyoming, to capitalise on the artificial intelligence boom. Looney said the role, which will be formally announced by the company on Monday, marked his first public appointment since he resigned abruptly from BP in September 2023 over his failure to disclose fully to the board past relationships with female colleagues at the company. "I had some of the best years of my life there [at BP]," said the 54-year-old executive, who joined BP when he left university in Dublin in 1991. "I'm wishing BP well, and of course for me I'm thinking about the next 32 years of my career, and I can't think of anything more exciting, more challenging to do than get stuck into this space." Prometheus plans to build one of the world's largest data centres on land owned by its founder and chief executive, Trenton Thornock, a rancher with experience in the finance and energy industries. The facility would offer up to one gigawatt capacity to technology companies and cover one square mile, about three quarters the size of New York's Central Park. In May, Prometheus signed a partnership agreement with Oklo, a nuclear energy developer chaired and backed by OpenAI's Sam Altman. "There will be other things that I do as well, but this is the first one that we have publicly announced and I'm really energised, really excited and looking forward to getting going," said Looney in an interview. Looney said he was also advising a Norwegian technology company and sitting on the board of a US non-profit organisation, Focusing Capital On The Long Term. He would not comment on a report by The Financial Times in July that he had held talks with senior figures in the UAE about a project that would involve him making private equity style investments with the backing of the Gulf state. Looney was BP chief executive for less than four years but garnered respect within the industry for his attempt to pivot the 115-year-old oil company to cleaner fuels. His career imploded last year following an investigation about past relationships with colleagues at BP, which prompted his resignation. He was later dismissed by BP for "serious misconduct" over his failure to disclose fully to the board past relationships and stripped of as much as $32.4mn in pay and unvested share awards. When asked if there were any legal issues outstanding with BP, Looney said not as far as he was concerned and he "wished the company well". Prometheus's Thornock, who previously worked in the drilling industry, said Looney had a great background in energy and sustainability, which made him a good candidate to chair the company. "Of course, Bernard started his career as a drilling engineer, so we have a lot of similarities in terms of coming out of the energy industry and now into the sustainability part of the tech industry. And we both actually grew up on family ranches," he said. He said the manner of Looney's departure from BP last year raised "no concerns" with him.