On-Premises Next-Gen AI Compute Data Center

The Pacific Northwest Division of Battelle Memorial Institute (Battelle), Management and Operating Contractor of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), on behalf of the Department of Energy (DOE), is issuing this request for information (RFI) to gather industry input on the design, construction, infrastructure, and operation of a scalable, high-performance data center optimized for AI and compute workloads.

Through this RFI, Battelle seeks industry input to inform future procurement strategies and technical requirements for the design and delivery of an on-premises, secure, scalable data center with an advanced AI compute infrastructure capable of training and operationalization of multi-data Large Language Models (LLMs) for scientific and national governmental missions. Initial production readiness for ~2 MW of compute is targeted for 2028, with potential future expansion to ~40 MW.

The facility must support mixed AI training/inference workloads with stringent security, compliance, and availability requirements appropriate for a DOE national laboratory. Interested parties who consider themselves experienced, knowledgeable, and well-versed in high-performance, advanced AI compute data centers are invited to submit a capability statement and response to the attached RFI.

Responses are to be submitted no later than 4:00pm Pacific Time, March 27, 2026. The response and capability statements shall be provided in electronic format. All responses and comments must be emailed to Samantha.Ernst@pnnl.gov. THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AT THIS TIME. This request for information does not constitute a solicitation/request for proposals and submission of any information in response to this market survey is purely voluntary.

This RFI is released pursuant to FAR 5.201(e), Exchanges with Industry, and is issued for the purpose of conducting market research as described in FAR 10.002. As such, nothing in this request shall be interpreted as a commitment on the part of Battelle to enter into a contract with any respondent. Battelle assumes no financial responsibility for any costs incurred.

Battelle will evaluate industry and market information to ascertain potential market capacity, potential solution options, design/requirement considerations, and potential interested contractors. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted or acknowledged, and no feedback or evaluations will be provided to companies regarding their submissions. BATTELLE IS NOT REQUESTING PROPOSALS AT THIS TIME AND INTERESTED PARTIES SHALL NOT SUBMIT PROPOSALS IN RESPONSE TO THE REQUEST FOR INFORMATION.