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Marsh helps structure Meta and BlackRock’s $14B El Paso data center venture
BlackRock funds an 80% stake in the venture while Meta holds 20%, with Meta contributing land and construction-in-progress valued around $2.3B and a potential one-time distribution of about $1B at close.
Marsh is involved in a major AI infrastructure financing in El Paso, Texas, supporting a new venture between Meta and BlackRock to develop and own a data center campus, according to Insurance Business. The article describes Marsh as providing project risk analysis and insurance services on the deal, with the broker operating on both sides of the transaction. Alongside work for Meta, Marsh also advised BlackRock fund clients in coordination with Charles River Associates and Turner & Townsend. BlackRock-managed funds will hold an 80% interest, while Meta retains the remaining 20%. The parties have committed to fund about $14 billion of total development costs, with Meta contributing land and construction-in-progress assets valued at roughly $2.3 billion, and BlackRock making a cash contribution of about $4.9 billion that is partly supported by a $12.5 billion debt financing package. The campus is set to provide 1 gigawatt of compute capacity, with Meta as the initial sole occupant under long-term lease arrangements. The leases include a four-year initial term with four extension options, and Meta is also set to provide residual value guarantees with a declining threshold over time, backed by an aggregate threshold of about $13 billion that can translate into a long-tail financial backstop under specific conditions in the first 16 years of the lease.