Traditional mining giant Riot Platforms (RIOT.US) is accelerating its shift toward AI infrastructure, having signed a data center leasing agreement with an unnamed leading AI lab, marking a strategic pivot from computing power mining to computing power rental. The deal covers 191 megawatts of capacity with a 20-year contract term, expected to generate approximately $9.1 billion in total revenue.

Project construction costs are estimated between $2.1 billion and $2.3 billion, with 80% to 90% relying on long-term project loans. After accounting for an estimated $180 million hardware refinancing from AMD (AMD.US), the remaining equity funding gap is between $210 million and $460 million, which could be reduced to between $30 million and $280 million through optimized financing structures. If the tenant exercises two extension options, the total contract revenue ceiling could rise to $16.1 billion.

To bridge the funding gap, Riot Platforms (RIOT.US) views bitcoin as a core funding source. As of June 30, the company held 11,380 bitcoin, with 5,821 already pledged to secure a $200 million credit line from Coinbase (COIN.US), leaving 51.2% of holdings restricted and only 5,559 bitcoin available. During the first half of 2026, the company sold 9,665 bitcoin, raising $732.5 million. Although no new sale plans were announced as of August 11, management still sees this as a key liquidity supplement.

Financially, after including depreciation, costs are 26.5% higher than output, but depreciation is a non-cash expense, so actual operating costs remain below revenue. However, rental payments won't begin until the data center becomes operational in 2027, meaning Riot Platforms (RIOT.US) must rely on continuous bitcoin sales to balance short-term funding pressures before long-term high returns materialize.