Geothermal startup Fervo Energy surged 33% on its Nasdaq debut on May 13, lifting its market capitalization above $10 billion and making it the largest clean energy IPO in history. The Bill Gates-backed Houston company priced shares at $27 the prior evening, raising $1.89 billion at an initial valuation of $7.6 billion, then opened at $36 under the ticker FRVO.
The rally was driven by AI data center operators scrambling for round-the-clock electricity. Fervo already supplies a 115-megawatt pilot to Google in Nevada and is building Cape Station in Utah, a 500-megawatt plant permitted for up to 2 gigawatts of expansion. Senior VP of Strategy Sarah Jewett said the company is "repeating the playbook from the shale energy industry but with the answer key," pointing to a two-thirds reduction in drilling cost per foot after 14 wells.
Fervo's debut underscores how the AI boom is reshaping power markets, with hyperscalers willing to pay premiums for firm, low-carbon baseload that solar and wind cannot match.