Oracle Adds NetApp Storage and Nuclear Power to Its AI Infrastructure Push

Oracle adds NetApp storage, a Point Beach nuclear power deal and a reported $7B Tencent chip lease as shares rise 2.9% but stay down 24% in 2026.

Oracle's cloud strategy is increasingly being shaped by the physical and contractual scaffolding behind artificial intelligence workloads rather than by software announcements alone. That shift was on full display this week as the company moved on three fronts: a storage partnership, a nuclear power supply agreement, and a reported blockbuster deal with a Chinese internet giant.

Shares of Oracle climbed 2.9% on Friday to close at €126.50, pushing the stock above its 50-day moving average of €125.35. The advance came against a broadly brighter mood across the technology sector, though it does little to erase a 24% decline since the start of the year — a gap that underscores how much skepticism still surrounds the company's expensive transformation.

NetApp ONTAP Heads to Oracle's Cloud

At the heart of Oracle's latest product move is a technology collaboration with NetApp that will embed NetApp ONTAP data management capabilities directly into Oracle's cloud environment. The new storage service is slated for delivery within the next 12 months. For Oracle, the appeal is straightforward: enterprise customers can keep using the storage architectures they already know while still tapping native cloud functionality, a combination the company hopes will lure demanding workloads from large corporate clients.

The pitch reflects a broader recognition that cloud providers are no longer competing on raw compute alone. Familiarity with existing enterprise tooling has become a decisive factor in whether major customers migrate their most sensitive applications.

Nuclear Power and a $300 Million Customer Saving

Energy procurement has emerged as an equally critical battleground. Oracle disclosed an agreement to purchase electricity from the Point Beach nuclear power plant, a move that could save the utility's customers in Wisconsin roughly $300 million in fuel costs, according to the company. The arrangement still requires approval from the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin.

The deal illustrates how tightly technology expansion has become intertwined with conventional infrastructure. Securing large-scale, reliable power is now a prerequisite for the data-center buildout that underpins AI services, and nuclear generation offers a low-carbon answer to that demand.

Tencent's Reported $7 Billion Chip Lease

Speculation about AI compute demand found fresh fuel in reports that Tencent Holdings plans a five-year lease for access to roughly 100,000 modern AI chips housed in Oracle data centers in Southeast Asia. The transaction's total value has been estimated at about $7 billion, with a prepayment of approximately one-third. Reuters, citing media reports, was unable to independently verify the figures, and neither company responded to inquiries.

If confirmed, the arrangement would rank among the largest known commitments for Oracle's cloud capacity and would signal that demand for its AI infrastructure extends well beyond the United States.

Flooding at Project Jupiter, but No Damage to Critical Systems

Operational resilience was tested on another front. Oracle and STACK Infrastructure said Wednesday that floodwater had reached the site of the Project Jupiter campus in southern New Mexico. Critical infrastructure was not damaged, according to the companies, leaving the construction timeline intact.

The disclosure serves as a reminder that the physical buildout of AI capacity is exposed to environmental risks that no amount of software optimization can offset.

Insider Buying and a Healthcare Data Pact

Confidence from within Oracle's leadership was on display in a regulatory filing. The living trust of Oracle director Stephen H. Rusckowski purchased 25,000 shares on Tuesday at a weighted average price of $139.352 per share. Insider purchases of that kind are often read by investors as a signal of long-term conviction.

Separately, Oracle Health signed a non-binding letter of intent with the King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre on Thursday to deepen the integration of clinical and genomic health data. The collaboration highlights Oracle's ambition to embed modern data architectures within vertical industries rather than confining itself to core IT.

Analysts Stay Bullish, the Market Stays Wary

Citizens kept its rating on the stock at "Market Outperform" with a $285 price target on Friday, according to media reports. That stands in sharp contrast to the shares' year-to-date slide of 24%, a decline that reflects persistent doubts among market participants.

The recent rebound, carried along by the wider market, offers Oracle something of a breather but does not resolve the structural challenges it faces. Rebuilding itself into a leading provider of demanding AI and cloud infrastructure demands enormous capital and patience. For investors, the central question is whether the combination of physical capacity, anchor customers, and strategic niches will be enough to close the valuation gap for good.