New Mexico Supreme Court pauses Project Jupiter water well drilling, air permit proceeding
SANTA FE, N.M. (KVIA) — Sunday, the New Mexico Supreme Court unanimously paused an air permit proceeding and water use from a new well for the Project Jupiter data center in Santa Teresa.
Documents said the court granted a stay in an Oct. 23, 2025, emergency drilling authorization permitting water use from a new well to construct Project Jupiter.
By granting a stay, the court temporarily froze the water use from the well. The Center for Biological Diversity against the New Mexico State Engineer and Santa Teresa Capital, LLC, filed the request for stay.
in a separate order, the court paused an air quality permit proceeding, documents said. This request for stay was granted in New Energy Economy against the New Mexico Environment Department.
The New Mexico Supreme Court further said a response should be filed by Sept. 2 in both orders.
The NMED said it’s preparing to file a response.
“In the meantime, the Department is releasing a draft version of its administrative record, which it already intended to file today as part of the administrative proceedings prior to the Supreme Court’s action. This will allow the public ample time to review, regardless of how the timeline moves forward,” NMED said in a statement.
In June, software company Oracle announced a new energy plan for Project Jupiter. It filed an application to use Bloom Energy fuel cell technology, replacing the original gas turbine and diesel generator design.
Oracle said the change would lower water use and emissions.
The software company also announced a new initiative to save more water than the data center uses. It said its initiative is expected to save 21 million gallons of water a year, or 20 times the amount needed to run cooling and power systems at Project Jupiter.
July 9, the New Mexico Department of Justice announced an investigation into allegations of fake public comments submitted during a public review period for the air quality permit.
NMDOJ said it would investigate Yucca Growth Infrastructure, which applied for the permit. The department said people alleged fake comments submitted under their names.
ABC-7 reached out to Oracle for comment. It provided the following statements:
“Oracle and its project partners remain committed to developing Project Jupiter responsibly. We are committed to protecting New Mexico’s resources, are abiding by every applicable regulatory process and public review period, and have complied with every required timeline along the way. The New Mexico Environment Department’s air-permitting process includes a thorough technical review, with many opportunities for public input at every stage in the process. Project Jupiter is meeting applicable permitting requirements, stands ready to proceed with the department’s public hearing process, and is engaging with the community as that review moves forward.
The effort to bypass the department’s established procedural deadlines is unwarranted, but we will continue to share facts about the project transparently and are confident the regulatory process will prevail. The facts already demonstrate the significant and growing economic benefits of this responsible data center project: nearly $80 million in state and county tax revenue delivered to date; more than $4.7 billion in projected long-term economic impact; 2,700 workers employed to date, including nearly 700 New Mexico residents; more than 7,000 expected construction jobs and 1,500 ongoing project-supported jobs; and $50 million committed to local water infrastructure. Project Jupiter is also designed to avoid potable water use for cooling, conserve more water than it uses through a partnership with Arable, reduce nitrogen oxide emissions by approximately 92% compared with the prior design, and match its electricity use with 100% carbon-free energy by 2031.”
We are deeply saddened that this order impacts a local small business. The immediate impact of this order falls on the region’s only commercial sod farm and the fourteen Santa Teresa residents whose jobs depend on its operations.
We will of course comply with the order and remain focused on long-term water stewardship. This includes a responsible, carefully developed plan that protects water as a valuable resource through closed-loop cooling, minimal ongoing use of non-potable water, and a recently announced partnership with Arable to conserve more water in the Rio Grande-Bravo watershed than Project Jupiter uses.”
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