Nebius Group shares rose 7.8% in premarket trading after the AI cloud provider announced a $2.6 billion deal with Bloom Energy to supply fuel-cell power for its data centers. This move tackles a major challenge in building AI infrastructure. The deal also highlights the growing power crisis for neocloud operators and explains why Bloom Energy continues to secure big contracts.
This year, Bloom Energy’s fuel-cell systems will give Nebius 328 megawatts of installed capacity, delivered in three phases, each lasting 10 years. These systems generate electricity on-site, so they do not rely on the main electrical grid. This setup helps data center operators avoid two major problems: reliance on grid infrastructure and long wait times for new grid connections.
Nebius’s chief product and infrastructure officer said that power is a major challenge for building AI infrastructure. He pointed to Bloom’s ability to deliver clean power quickly as the main reason for the deal. For neocloud operators like Nebius, who need to bring computing power online fast, avoiding grid delays is crucial for their business.
Bloom Energy has benefited the most from this trend. Its stock is up more than 1,400% over the past year, including a 1.6% gain in premarket trading on Thursday after an 8% jump on Wednesday when the deal was announced. Since 2024, Bloom has signed new or expanded deals with CoreWeave, Oracle, and American Electric Power. After years of losses, analysts expect Bloom Energy to earn $475 million in 2026, over $1.2 billion in 2027, and $2.1 billion in 2028.
Nebius shares have climbed 407% in the past year as investors bet that the neocloud model can capture large-scale AI infrastructure spending.
