Oracle Shares Slide as Blue Owl Exits $10B Michigan Data Center Talks

Oracle's stock tumbled after Blue Owl Capital abruptly withdrew from negotiations to finance a $10 billion data center project in Michigan. The facility, intended to power a 1-gigawatt OpenAI operation in Saline Township, faced immediate skepticism following a Financial Times report alleging the deal's collapse.

The timing compounds pressure on Oracle, which battles $248 billion in lease commitments alongside rising cloud infrastructure costs and a 46% share price decline from its peak. While Oracle insists the project remains "on schedule" through development partner Related Digital, Blue Owl's exit raises questions about the company's debt-laden balance sheet and aggressive AI spending.

Blue Owl previously backed two major Oracle data centers—a $15 billion Texas site and an $18 billion New Mexico facility. Their withdrawal spotlights growing institutional unease about Oracle's financial positioning as it competes in the capital-intensive AI infrastructure race.