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Google agrees to back Anthropic's $19 billion TeraWulf lease, TeraWulf says
TeraWulf says Google will back Anthropic's lease payments at its Hawesville, Kentucky, data center campus, but only once the last data hall in each building is delivered, its Nov. 4 filing shows.
Google agrees to back Anthropic's $19 billion TeraWulf lease, TeraWulf says
Google's promise to back Anthropic's rent at TeraWulf's Kentucky data center campus is not in effect yet: under each of the three agreements it starts only when the final data hall in that building begins its lease, and TeraWulf expects delivery in phases from late 2027 through the second quarter of 2028 [1]. TeraWulf disclosed the agreements in a filing accepted at 8:16 a.m. ET on Nov. 4, describing them as support for debt financing behind "approximately $19 billion of contracted lease commitments with Anthropic, PBC" [3].
The mechanism
In July 2026, TeraWulf's subsidiary Raylan Data LLC signed a 20-year lease with Anthropic for "approximately 401 MW of critical IT load," the power available to run the tenant's computers, at TeraWulf's campus in Hawesville, Kentucky [1]. The space sits in three buildings, CB-1, CB-2 and CB-3, and Anthropic's rent starts as each data hall is delivered [1].
On Nov. 4, TeraWulf, Raylan, another TeraWulf subsidiary, Anthropic and Google LLC signed one credit support agreement for each building, under which Google "agreed to backstop … certain obligations of Anthropic" under the leases [1]. Raylan and Anthropic amended the leases the same day; the filing does not describe the changes [1].
The backstop covers the tenant, not TeraWulf. If Anthropic misses a payment or becomes insolvent, and Raylan gives notice, Google can pay the rent due and take over the lease as tenant, or, in some cases, pay a termination fee and become entitled to an equity stake in Raylan [1]. Google can also put off that choice for a set period while paying the unpaid rent and any rent that comes due [1].
The link to TeraWulf's own borrowing is indirect. Ex. 10.1 says the termination-fee schedule "has been prepared based on" the amount of debt the landlord expects to take on to build the campus, which it calls the Project Debt, and the fee shrinks over a set term [1][2]. TeraWulf's release says Google provides credit support for "anticipated debt financing"; no loan, lender or amount is named [3].
The evidence
| What Google is on the hook for, and when | Term | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | Anthropic payment default or insolvency event, after notice from Raylan | [1] |
| Google's options | Pay rent due and assume the lease, or pay a termination fee and gain an equity interest in Raylan | [1] |
| Deferral | Google pays unpaid rent while it delays choosing | [1] |
| Start | Commencement of the final data hall under each lease | [1] |
| Six-year lockout | Google can't use its option to reject the lease for six years unless the installed TPU Pods, racks of Google's tensor processing unit chips, can draw under 50% of the tenant's critical power | [2] |
| End | Anthropic, or an affiliate guaranteeing it, holds certain investment-grade ratings, credit grades that signal a low risk of default, for at least three months | [1] |
| Fee cap and Project Debt size | Not disclosed; left blank in the filed form | [2] |
Source: TeraWulf Form 8-K and Ex. 10.1, Nov. 4, 2026 [1][2]. Table: Le Coin.
The backstop is built to fall away once Anthropic, or an affiliate standing behind it, earns such a rating and keeps it for three months [1]. TeraWulf's release says Alphabet's senior unsecured debt is rated AA+ by S&P Global Ratings and Aa2 by Moody's [3]. "Cost of capital is fundamental to infrastructure development," Chief Financial Officer Patrick Fleury said in the release [3].
The form also limits how quickly Google can walk away. It may not use its rejection option within six years of the agreement taking effect unless the TPU Pods installed in the building, racks of tensor processing units, could use less than 50% of the tenant's critical power [2]. If Google steps in to cure a default, the tenant must repay its costs "plus an administrative fee of five percent (5%)" [2].
Construction is a separate contract. TeraWulf signed a definitive engineering, procurement and construction agreement with Fluor Enterprises covering three data center buildings at the campus, on a guaranteed-maximum-price basis, and says that price "is being established" as engineering and procurement progress [3]. Ready-for-service completions under Fluor's milestones are expected from late 2027 through the second quarter of 2028 [3].
TeraWulf has not left bitcoin. The release says it "operates existing bitcoin-mining infrastructure at Lake Mariner," its New York campus, with portions being repurposed for computing leases [3]. It also says it recently expanded contracted power capacity to 1 GW at its Muskie campus in eastern Kentucky [3].
The objection
The filed Ex. 10.1 is a form of the agreement, not the executed copies, and some schedules, including the termination-fee schedule, were omitted under SEC rules [1][2]. Google's exposure also has exits written in. The backstop ends on conditions that include Anthropic's rating, and the six-year lockout lifts if the installed TPU Pods can't use half the power [1][2].
The tell (Le Coin's view)
In Le Coin's view, the lenders TeraWulf is courting would be pricing Anthropic's rent with Alphabet's credit behind it, not TeraWulf's. That protection begins only after construction ends and can end as soon as Anthropic earns its own investment-grade rating. The numbers to watch are how large the debt turns out to be and how much Google would pay to leave.
Sources
- [1] TeraWulf Inc., Form 8-K, Items 1.01, 7.01, 8.01 and 9.01, accession 0001628280-26-069810, accepted Nov. 4, 2026, 8:16 a.m. ET, https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1083301/000162828026069810/wulf-20261104.htm ; accessed 9:12 a.m. ET Nov. 4.
- [2] TeraWulf Inc., Exhibit 10.1, Form of Credit Support Agreement, Nov. 4, 2026, https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1083301/000162828026069810/exhibit101-googlexterawulf.htm ; accessed 9:12 a.m. ET Nov. 4.
- [3] TeraWulf Inc., Exhibit 99.1, "TeraWulf Secures Google Credit Backstop for Project Financing in Support of $19 Billion Anthropic Lease; Executes Definitive Fluor EPC Agreement," Nov. 4, 2026, https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1083301/000162828026069810/wulfhawesvillecsaandepcmpr.htm ; accessed 9:12 a.m. ET Nov. 4.
Holding the Corner.
Not financial advice.