Crusoe and Araico Plan AI Cloud Deployment at Itaipú Dam in Paraguay

Crusoe on October 22, 2026 announced a strategic partnership with Paraguayan energy and infrastructure developer Araico to build high-performance AI compute infrastructure in Paraguay powered by the Itaipú Hydroelectric Dam, with an initial deployment planned online in mid-2027 and a stated path to 106 MW of IT capacity. The company said the initiative is its first dedicated AI Cloud deployment in Latin America.

Crusoe said the facility will be located adjacent to the Itaipú substation and will draw power directly from the dam, which the company describes as one of the world’s largest and most reliable 100% renewable hydroelectric power sources. Long-term options would expand the site to approximately 280 MW total. The facility is planned to serve U.S. cloud customers as well as growing demand within Latin America through the Crusoe Cloud platform, advancing the company’s strategy of locating AI compute directly at abundant energy sources. Crusoe said the project extends its footprint of energy-aligned AI infrastructure from North America and Europe into Latin America and deepens digital infrastructure ties across the Western Hemisphere.

Partnership Roles and Executive Statements

Araico will lead local development and site infrastructure for the project, while Crusoe will manage, operate, and deliver the physical compute for Crusoe Cloud. Crusoe said the arrangement pairs local infrastructure development expertise with its AI factory and cloud operations track record.

“Crusoe was founded on a simple idea: build digital infrastructure where power is abundant, accessible and environmentally-aligned,” said Cully Cavness, Crusoe’s co-founder, president, and chief strategy officer, in the partnership announcement. Cavness said the Itaipú dam gives Paraguay one of the most abundant renewable power resources in the world, and said the company’s energy-first strategy is designed to create value from precisely that kind of resource through advanced digital infrastructure.

Araico CEO Alejandro Zuccolillo said pairing Itaipú’s hydroelectric capacity with Crusoe’s ability to build and manage AI infrastructure keeps more of the value of Paraguay’s renewable power in the country, converting energy abundance into high-tech industrial growth, local employment, and digital innovation.

President Santiago Peña said the project creates new value from Paraguay’s natural resources and brings jobs, investment, technology, and innovation to the country. He said it gives Paraguay a scalable model for lasting change and an opportunity to establish itself as a regional leader in AI infrastructure.

Agreement Finalized During U.S. Trade Delegation

The U.S. State Department’s Office of the Spokesman documented the agreement in a fact sheet dated October 21, 2026. According to the fact sheet, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau led a U.S. trade delegation to Asunción from October 19 to 21, 2026, focused on expanding U.S. investment and creating opportunities for U.S. companies in technology, critical minerals, riverine infrastructure, and logistics. Landau met with President Peña and Foreign Minister Ramírez during the trip, and the Crusoe release notes that Landau was leading the U.S. business delegation in Paraguay when the agreement was signed.

The fact sheet states that Crusoe, which it identifies as an American company, and Araico finalized the strategic partnership agreement, and it characterizes the project as potentially one of the largest private investments in Paraguay’s history. In the Crusoe release, Landau said the project has the potential to be the largest private foreign investment in Paraguayan history, adding that American capital and know-how will establish Paraguay as a world-class tech powerhouse and that it reinforces the longstanding bonds between the two countries.

The fact sheet lists further commitments from the visit. Uranium Energy Corp announced a $12 million investment to develop one of its uranium concessions in Paraguay. Landau and Ramírez signed an Aerial Intercept Assistance Agreement, to be brought into force through a subsequent exchange of diplomatic notes, which the department says is intended to improve Paraguay’s ability to monitor and protect its airspace against suspected narcotrafficking flights. The two also signed a Memorandum of Intent covering the deployment to Paraguay of the Personal Identification Secure Comparison and Evaluation System, a border management and passenger screening system.

The State Department said it is providing $5.5 million in foreign assistance to expand efforts against terrorist financing, support accountability for narco-terrorists, and operationalize a new counterterrorism center, and to begin projects focused on border security and digital evidence capabilities, along with $6.25 million in bilateral security assistance to address transnational organized crime. The department also said it is preparing to deploy a counterterrorism advisor to Asunción, the first position of its kind for the Counterterrorism bureau in the region, and announced the creation of the first Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs office in Asunción, which will serve as a regional hub for program coordination in the Southern Cone.

The two governments also announced the start of negotiations toward a U.S. Atomic Energy Act Agreement for Cooperation in the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy, known as a 123 Agreement. The fact sheet states that, once in force, such an agreement would set the legal framework required for U.S. companies to export significant civil nuclear equipment and material to Paraguay under the highest standards of nuclear safety, security, and nonproliferation.