DeepGreen Western Passage subsea-compute proposal

FJI source-qualified: four-document gate met, including project-specific government evidence. Qualification evidence and decisions →

Published and evidence reviewed October 17, 2026

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Project status

DeepGreen Western Passage SPV LLC proposes subsea computing equipment near Eastport, Maine. FERC accepted its preliminary-permit application for filing in August 2026. The reviewed record supports an early feasibility proposal, with municipal restrictions and opposition; it does not establish an issued permit, construction approval or operating equipment.

Power and computing

FERC lists up to 16 tidal turbine-generators rated at 300 kW each, equivalent to up to 4.8 MW of proposed generating nameplate, and 34 compute pods. Nameplate is equipment rating, not continuous generation or IT load. The notice describes a captive generation loop without a grid connection. Continuous supply, storage, conversion losses and useful computing remain unverified.

Local approvals and opposition

Eastport’s September 9 minutes record adoption of a large-scale-data-center ban and authorization to seek intervention. The council’s September 22 letter says the ban includes underwater centers within the areas covered by the provisions. It also anticipates further clarification. This profile does not resolve offshore jurisdiction, preemption or the project’s final legal applicability.

Company role and capital

The named federal applicant is DeepGreen Western Passage SPV LLC. No verified publicly traded customer, supplier or sponsor relationship is established. ORPC expressly disclaimed affiliation in a statement reported by The Maine Monitor on August 21. An authoritative ownership chain, investor disclosures, committed financing and public quarterly statements were not established; the corporate-disclosure gate remains held.

Investor takeaway

The immediate question is whether a combined marine-energy and computing design can establish technical feasibility and obtain the permissions and capital needed to progress. A filing milestone cannot supply those answers. Current IT MW, project spending, commercial acceptance and attributable earnings remain unavailable.

Next evidence

The official filing deadline is October 19, 2026 at 5 p.m. Eastern. A subsequent FERC decision and its conditions, any clarified municipal rules, phase-specific feasibility studies and executed commercial agreements would be the next observable developments. There is no verified construction or customer-service start date.

Delivery commitments and dated checkpoints

• February 11, 2026: Preliminary-permit application filed; subsequently supplemented and amended. Application filing
• August 19, 2026 notice; August 25 publication: FERC accepted the preliminary-permit application for filing and opened comments. No issued permit or construction authorization established. Procedural milestone
• September 9, 2026: Eastport approved the large-scale-data-center ordinance and authorized intervention and opposition in the FERC process. Municipal action
• September 22, 2026: Council signed a letter requesting denial while expressly recognizing that a preliminary permit would not authorize construction. Municipal correspondence

No verified construction-completion or service-start commitment is available, so schedule variance cannot be measured. Application acceptance and municipal actions do not establish delivered computing capacity.

Related analysis

Inside DeepGreen’s Maine Subsea Data-Center Proposal

Sources and claim boundaries

Six distinct documents: the FERC notice, two separate municipal records, two original Maine Monitor reports and an independently reported Quoddy Tides council account. The two Monitor reports share one newsroom. Government descriptions of the application establish proposed scope, not demonstrated engineering. The complete amended application and an authoritative corporate ownership disclosure were not retrieved.

1. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission · 2026-08-25

   FERC accepted the preliminary-permit application of DeepGreen Western Passage SPV LLC for filing. Its notice lists 34 compute pods and up to 16 tidal turbine-generators rated 300 kW each, in a captive generation loop without a grid connection. A preliminary permit, if issued, confers filing priority, not construction authority. Comments and competing filings are due October 19, 2026 at 5 p.m. Eastern.

   FR Doc. 2026-17254, dated August 19 and published August 25; Federal Register pp. 54868–54869. Project No. 15424-000. · Reviewed 2026-10-17

2. City of Eastport · 2026-09-09

   Council approved the citizen petition prohibiting large-scale data centers by a 5–0 vote and authorized the city manager to seek intervention and prepare an opposition letter in FERC docket P-15424. These are municipal actions, not a FERC decision or proof of construction.

   Minutes p. 2, item VI(a); p. 3, item VII(g). · Reviewed 2026-10-17

3. Eastport City Council · 2026-09-23

   The signed council letter asks FERC to deny the preliminary permit. It confirms the September 9 ban includes underwater centers within the areas covered by its provisions and says further strengthening and clarification are expected. It acknowledges a preliminary permit would not authorize construction.

   Signed letter pp. 1 and 3–4; city posting dated September 23. Scanned original read with OCR and pivotal wording visually checked. · Reviewed 2026-10-17

4. The Maine Monitor / Melissa S. Razdrih · 2026-08-21

   Original reporting describes the revised proposal and interviews FERC, the developer and ORPC. ORPC expressly disclaims a project affiliation. Reported 15 MW and earlier 51 MW concepts are not treated as verified IT capacity or added to the notice’s listed generation equipment.

   Project revisions paragraphs; ORPC statement and direct CEO response; FERC clarification of application acceptance. · Reviewed 2026-10-17

5. The Maine Monitor / Melissa S. Razdrih · 2026-09-11

   Reporting on the September 9 council meeting corroborates adoption and the intervention request, records questions about the ordinance’s geographic scope, and attributes the developer’s acknowledgment that a study permit is distinct from construction permission.

   Council motions, developer statement, ordinance adoption and geographic-scope discussion. · Reviewed 2026-10-17

6. The Quoddy Tides / Catherine J.S. Lee · 2026-09-11

   A separate newsroom reports the September 9 ordinance vote and intervention authorization and explains that application acceptance does not mean a preliminary permit was granted.

   September 11 article, opening paragraphs and federal review explanation; full accessible article read. · Reviewed 2026-10-17

AI-assisted source-based research. No original interviews or site visits. Representative map pin shows the Eastport / Western Passage locality, not an approved project footprint.

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