Fermi Inc posts $189m Q1 loss as board ousts CEO ahead of Texas AI power push
Fermi Inc reported a net loss of $189 million for the first quarter of 2026 as it accelerates its Project Matador campus in Texas. The company replaced high-cost debt with equipment financing and appointed an interim CFO following the termination of its former chief executive.
Dallas-based Fermi Inc has reported a net loss of $189 million for the first quarter of 2026, marking a significant widening from the minimal losses incurred during its prior startup phase. The deficit was primarily driven by $134 million in non-cash share-based compensation and a $25 million debt extinguishment charge related to the repayment of a Macquarie term loan.
In a move to enforce governance and financial discipline ahead of critical commercial scaling, the board of directors terminated the former chief executive officer for cause. The board has appointed Robert Masson as interim chief financial officer and engaged executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles to recruit a permanent chief executive officer as part of its "Fermi 2.0" strategic transition.
To stabilise its balance sheet, Fermi replaced $150 million in high-cost debt with non-recourse equipment financing, anchored by a $500 million facility backed by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG). The firm ended the quarter with $243 million in cash and restricted cash, having secured $785 million in new equipment financing facilities during the period.
Operationally, the company advanced its focus on the Project Matador AI power campus in Carson County, Texas. Fermi secured more than 2 gigawatts of power generation capacity and advanced permitting for approximately 11 GW of future development. Key milestones included obtaining a roughly 6 GW Clean Air Permit from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, described as the second-largest of its kind in the United States, and selection by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for an advanced reactor licensing pilot.
Chairman Marius Haas stated that the company is entering a new phase focused on securing a binding tenant agreement and accelerating commercialisation efforts. Tenant discussions with hyperscalers, neo-cloud providers, and enterprise compute operators have intensified, with the firm seeking to position itself as a large-scale private power supplier for artificial intelligence and data centre operators.
