Massive AI Data Center Left In The Dark Until 2030s As Microsoft Walks Away

Microsoft (MSFT) shares rose 1.16% to $535.18 after Bernstein raised its price target to $662, maintaining an Outperform rating. The company reported $678B in commercial remaining performance obligations, up 84% YoY, with cloud revenue at $59.3B, up 27%. Azure and other cloud services revenue grew 43%. Investors will watch for profitability and revenue conversion in future earnings.

Microsoft (MSFT) abandoned a U.K. data center deal due to electricity delays. SemiAnalysis forecasts 50 GW of new data center capacity outside China in 2027, up from 24 GW currently under construction. The firm cites long-term leases and on-site power generation as key drivers, though some analysts remain skeptical.

Arrow Electronics' Global Enterprise Computing Solutions President Eric Nowak will retire on Dec. 31, 2026, and transition to an advisory role. Rodney Clark, a former Cisco and Microsoft executive, will take over the leadership. Nowak's departure follows Arrow ECS's loss of its Dell enterprise relationship. According to the company, Nowak is retiring for personal reasons.

The U.S. Department of Energy is providing up to $4.4 billion in loans to restart three shuttered nuclear plants in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Iowa. Microsoft and Google have signed long-term agreements to purchase electricity from two of the plants, aiming to meet growing demand from AI data centers. The restarts face safety concerns and delays, with operations expected to resume between 2027 and 2029.

The U.S. Department of Labor suspended PERM processing for Microsoft, Adobe, and six IT firms, affecting green card paths for tech workers. The suspension is limited to these companies and does not impact other green card options like EB-2 NIW or EB-1A. Pending PERM applications are paused but not denied, and new applications from these employers cannot proceed. Workers at affected companies may explore alternative green card pathways.

Microsoft has reportedly withdrawn from a $2.7B UK supercomputer project, which was unveiled during Trump's 2025 state visit. The project, involving 23,040 Nvidia chips, faced power supply delays. Microsoft and OpenAI have stepped back, while Google has agreed to take capacity at another Nscale site. Nscale is exploring alternative power solutions and remains committed to the project.