Troy, Michigan-based Virtus Solis Technologies and Chicago-based Brae Systems have signed a 20-year power purchase agreement under which Virtus Solis will supply 100MW of orbital solar power, delivering 876,000 MWh annually to Brae's underwater data center concept. Neither company has yet deployed the infrastructure required to fulfill the deal; Virtus Solis plans a 100kW pilot solar plant in low-Earth orbit within approximately 24 months and a public microwave transmission demonstration in March 2027. The contract includes an option for Brae to take up to 250MW within three years of initial commercial operations.
This PPA represents an early-stage commercial signal for space-based solar power as a potential long-term energy source for data centers, a supply category that has not previously reached a contracted stage with a data center operator. The agreement links two technologies, orbital solar generation and underwater data center deployment, that are both pre-commercial, making it a speculative but precedent-setting arrangement that regulators and investors will likely monitor as launch costs and in-orbit assembly capabilities evolve.
A PPA for space-based solar power to supply a data center is a novel and newsworthy energy story — space solar is an emerging technology and this appears to be one of the first such deals in the data center sector. 1 similar article covering this event were reviewed but not selected.