TeraWulf's $3.5B Debt Plan for Anthropic AI Infrastructure Raises Market Eyebrows

TeraWulf Inc. (NASDAQ: WULF) is reportedly preparing a $3.5 billion debt raise to fund construction at its Justified Data campus in Kentucky, where Anthropic has signed a long-term lease for large-scale AI infrastructure capacity. Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is expected to lead the financing, which could include leveraged loans and high-yield bonds. Chief Financial Officer Patrick Fleury said the transaction is expected to launch this year and would mark TeraWulf's first entry into the leveraged loan market.

Financing Strategy and Transition Dynamics

■The planned raise comes as TeraWulf pushes ahead with a 20-year Anthropic lease covering roughly 401 megawatts of critical IT capacity at the Hawesville campus. The initial term is expected to generate about $19 billion in contracted lease revenue.

■Capacity is scheduled to begin coming online in the second half of 2027, with the site expected to reach its full 401 MW deployment by early 2028.

■TeraWulf has already leaned heavily on debt markets to finance that transition. The company raised $3.2 billion in October 2025 and another $1.3 billion in December as its data center strategy expanded.

Market Impact and Investor Sentiment

■The Kentucky project has quickly become central to TeraWulf's shift beyond bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) mining. The company is using the same power access and large-scale site development capabilities built around mining to secure long-duration AI infrastructure customers.

■CEO Paul Prager said the Anthropic agreement "validates our strategy," adding that the lease provides a long-term revenue base while creating room for further expansion at the campus.

■Bitcoin mining remains part of TeraWulf's business, but the Anthropic campus is increasingly shaping how investors value the company's power portfolio and development pipeline.

Defne Aydın Note: This debt raise underscores TeraWulf's evolution from a crypto miner to a long-term infrastructure developer. With the ECB's rate path and Eurozone inflation in focus, such financing could face cost pressures. AI-driven data centers' energy demands may also heighten sensitivity to global energy price swings.