Nebius Group N.V. (NBIS) shares surged 15.6% to $221.72 in Thursday afternoon trading, as investors welcomed a strategic power agreement with Bloom Energy that addresses a critical bottleneck for the artificial intelligence sector. The stock touched an intraday high of $226.77 before paring gains.
The deal underscores a growing realization that AI infrastructure requires more than just advanced chips—it demands reliable, rapidly deployable electricity. Nebius, a provider of AI cloud services, signed a master fuel cell capacity agreement with Bloom Energy on May 14, securing up to 328 megawatts of on-site electricity capacity for its AI facilities. The agreement could cost Nebius up to $2.6 billion over a 10-year period, subject to certain conditions.
Under the terms, Bloom Energy will install, operate, and maintain fuel cell systems at Nebius sites, providing “behind-the-meter” power that bypasses the public grid. The initial 328 MW project is expected to be operational later this year and will replace previously planned combustion-based equipment at Nebius’s first U.S. deployment. Andrey Korolenko, Nebius’s chief product and infrastructure officer, highlighted that power availability is “a key constraint” for AI expansion, while Bloom’s chief commercial officer, Aman Joshi, noted that “AI workloads demand power infrastructure.”
Bloom Energy shares rose 12.2% on the announcement, making the deal a two-stock mover. CoreWeave, another AI infrastructure player often compared to Nebius, gained 6.1%, as investors continued to price in the sector’s reliance on power, financing, and Nvidia-based computing capacity.
Nebius has already posted strong financial momentum. First-quarter revenue jumped to $399.0 million from $50.9 million a year earlier, with its AI cloud business contributing $389.7 million. The company’s remaining performance obligations—contracted revenue not yet recognized—stood at $33.6 billion as of March 31. Reuters reported last week that Nebius raised its 2026 capital spending forecast to $20 billion-$25 billion from $16 billion-$20 billion, and counts Meta Platforms and Microsoft among its customers.
CEO Arkady Volozh recently remarked that there are “several customers competing for every GPU,” a statement that helps explain why investors continue to reward capacity announcements despite rising costs. The company’s ability to secure power is seen as a competitive edge in a market where electricity is becoming a scarce asset.
Analyst opinions remain mixed. Citigroup maintained a Buy rating with a $287 price target on May 15, while D.A. Davidson held a Hold rating at $250 on May 18, and Morgan Stanley kept a Hold at $144 on May 14, according to Markets Insider. The downside risks are clear: the Bloom agreement is still subject to conditions, and Nebius has warned that large power deployments face technical and operational challenges. The company may also need additional capital to fund growth. If power delivery, customer ramp-ups, or financing slip, the stock’s premium could quickly erode.
For now, the market is treating power as the next scarce asset in AI, and Nebius has turned that into a stock catalyst. The harder test will come when investors ask whether those megawatts can be converted into revenue on schedule.
