Fervo Energy said on October 1, 2026, that its first Cape Station GeoBlock reached commercial operation on September 30, after synchronizing with the grid on September 24. The company reported 33 megawatts (MW) of net output from the unit. The milestone belongs to Cape Station’s initial phase; Google’s 396-MW power purchase agreement (PPA) is for a separate expansion expected in 2028. Fervo Energy’s operating announcement Fervo Energy’s PPA announcement
Cape Station’s first 33-MW unit
A PPA is an agreement to buy electricity. Fervo describes Phase I at Cape Station, in Beaver County, Utah, as approximately 100 MW across three 33-MW GeoBlocks. The first block reached contractual commercial operation on September 30, and Fervo said it was generating revenue under a PPA. The company expected the other two Phase I blocks to reach commercial operation by January 1, 2027. Fervo Energy’s operating announcement
Google’s agreement covers a later expansion
Fervo announced the 396-MW agreement with Google on September 1, 2026. The company expects that capacity to come online in 2028 as part of an expansion beyond the initial approximately 100-MW phase. Fervo describes a potential Utah data center as one use for the power; final plans depend on engineering feasibility, state and local approvals, and commercial conditions. Fervo Energy’s PPA announcement
The first GeoBlock’s commercial operation is a Phase I milestone; the Google PPA concerns the later expansion. Fervo also expected an additional 400-MW Cape Station phase to reach commercial operation in 2028. The 396-MW agreement is part of that planned buildout, not the 33-MW unit’s Phase I output. Fervo Energy’s operating announcement Fervo Energy’s PPA announcement
Google also has an option to expand its offtake by approximately 600 MW by June 2030. If exercised, that could bring its potential total offtake to nearly 1 gigawatt; the additional capacity is an option, not part of the 396 MW already covered by the announced PPA. Fervo Energy’s PPA announcement
What Fervo has said about cost and reliability
Fervo’s September 1 announcement did not disclose the PPA’s price or other financial terms. In a CNBC interview published September 4, Fervo CEO Tim Latimer said the company believed it was on track for a capital cost below $3,000 per kilowatt. That is a company target for capital cost, not the price Google pays for electricity.
Enhanced geothermal systems tap hot rock by drilling wells and using pressurized water to create or reopen fractures; heated fluid then returns to the surface to generate electricity, as described by the Houston Chronicle. In that October 12 report, Greg Bean, executive director of the University of Houston Energy Management Institute, said he could not point to a site with 20 years of steady output using the technology and raised a question about whether a well pair can maintain the required temperature.
