MARA Holdings Acquires Long Ridge Energy for $1.5B in AI Data Center Push

MARA Holdings (Nasdaq: MARA) announced on April 30, 2026 that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Long Ridge Energy & Power LLC from FTAI Infrastructure (Nasdaq: FIP) in a deal valued at approximately $1.5 billion. The transaction marks the most significant step yet in MARA's strategic repositioning away from pure-play Bitcoin mining toward vertically integrated energy and compute infrastructure ownership.

Deal Structure and Financials

The total transaction value of approximately $1.5 billion includes the assumption of at least $785 million in existing Long Ridge debt, with the remaining balance to be paid in cash and backstopped by a bridge loan from Barclays. Key financial highlights include:

• Approximately $144 million in annualized adjusted EBITDA, based on Long Ridge Energy's second-half 2025 performance
• All-in operating costs of $15 per megawatt-hour
• Expected close in the second half of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals including Hart-Scott-Rodino Act clearance and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approval
• FIP shares jumped 12% in pre-market trading on the news, while MARA shares were up 3%

The Asset: 505 MW Plant and 1,600+ Acres in Ohio

The deal gives MARA direct ownership of a combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) facility on the Ohio River in PJM Interconnection territory, one of the most active power markets in North America for data center development.

The site includes a co-located 200 MW data center already on site, along with more than 1,600 acres in Hannibal, Ohio. The full asset package also includes water access, fiber connections, fuel supply, and direct grid interconnection. MARA said the site has the potential to support more than 1 gigawatt of total power capacity over time.

Capacity Expansion and AI Buildout Timeline

The acquisition pushes MARA's total owned and operated power capacity to approximately 2.2 GW across PJM, ERCOT, SPP, and international markets — a roughly 65% increase. MARA has stated it does not plan to reduce Long Ridge's existing power deliveries to the PJM grid following the close.

MARA plans to begin constructing initial AI and critical IT capacity in the first half of 2027, targeting commercial service by mid-2028. In an interview, CEO Fred Thiel said the company has already attracted interest from potential tenants, including hyperscalers that provide large-scale cloud computing capacity.

Strategic Context: Bitcoin Sales Funding the Pivot

The Long Ridge acquisition did not occur in isolation. In early April 2026, MARA sold 15,133 BTC for $1.1 billion, using the proceeds to repurchase $1 billion in aggregate principal of its convertible senior notes due 2030 and 2031. In March 2026, MARA revised its treasury policy to allow sales from its full Bitcoin holdings rather than limiting disposals to newly mined coins only — a policy shift that signaled the company's intent to redeploy capital into hard infrastructure assets.

As Thiel put it: "Power is the scarce input in AI." The Long Ridge deal consolidates that thesis into a single owned platform, positioning MARA to compete directly for AI and high-performance compute tenants as demand for contracted, large-scale power capacity continues to intensify across North American data center markets.

Published by Coinplurk.com