Riot ($RIOT) Rockets 13% Following Major Lease With AMD

Riot Platforms (NASDAQ: RIOT) has completed the purchase of 200 acres at its Rockdale, Texas, site and signed a long-term data center lease with Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD), marking the first major hyperscale tenant at the location.

The fee simple acquisition replaces Riot’s prior ground lease at Rockdale and was funded entirely through the sale of approximately 1,080 bitcoin from the company’s balance sheet, totaling $96 million. 

The mining company said the purchase secures long-term operational control of the site and opens it for large-scale data center development. 

The property includes a 700 MW grid interconnection, dedicated water supply, and fiber connectivity.

Shares of Riot’s stock jumped roughly 13% following the announcement and are currently trading at $18.70 a share. 

Under the new lease, the company will deliver 25 megawatts (MW) of critical IT load to AMD in two phases, starting in January 2026 and completing by May 2026. 

The initial term runs 10 years and carries an expected contract value of $311 million, with three five-year extensions potentially bringing total revenue to $1 billion. 

AMD also holds an option to expand by 75 MW and a right of first refusal for an additional 100 MW, which would bring its total footprint at Rockdale to 200 MW. Riot estimates retrofit capital expenditures for the initial deployment at $89.8 million, or $3.6 million per MW, and expects the lease to contribute roughly $25 million in net operating income per year.

Riot’s improved land capabilities 

Riot now owns more than 1,100 acres and 1.7 gigawatts of fully approved power capacity across its two Texas sites, Rockdale and Corsicana, roughly 100 miles apart. 

The company positions its portfolio within the “Texas Triangle,” covering Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio, a major U.S. data center hub.

Chief Executive Jason Les said the AMD agreement validates Riot’s infrastructure and development capabilities, and marks a turning point in its strategy to repurpose bitcoin mining assets for high-performance computing and AI workloads. The company said began evaluating its sites for AI and HPC applications less than a year ago.

The company joins other publicly traded bitcoin miners shifting toward data center leasing amid rising mining costs and network difficulty. 

The company said it plans to continue converting power at Rockdale and Corsicana for non-mining tenants, pursuing further development and leasing opportunities.