Surge in Gas-Powered Projects Tied to U.S. Data Center Expansion

Research released this week shows that gas-fired power projects intended exclusively for data centers have more than doubled in less than a year. Global Energy Monitor counted 97 GW of such projects slated for completion by the end of 2025 in a January survey, up from just 4 GW tracked in early 2024. An updated mid-2026 assessment puts the pipeline at over 189 GW—enough to supply roughly a million homes per gigawatt. The growth reflects a broader shift toward “behind-the-meter” plants that data-center developers build to avoid lengthy grid-connection processes and to keep electricity costs off ratepayers’ bills.

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The acceleration coincides with soaring artificial-intelligence workloads that demand large, reliable power supplies. Tech firms have increasingly turned to private fossil-fuel facilities as a way to secure capacity quickly. The Trump administration promoted this model through a voluntary pledge that tech giants such as Microsoft, Meta, Google and OpenAI, along with several Republican governors and major utilities, have signed. While the approach speeds deployment, many of the new turbines are less efficient, raising concerns about higher greenhouse-gas emissions. Some of the plants are permitted to emit more CO2 annually than several small- and medium-sized countries.

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• 189 GW of gas projects for data centers projected by mid-2026 (Global Energy Monitor).

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• 97 GW slated for completion by end-2025 (January data).

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• 4 GW recorded in early 2024, illustrating the rapid scale-up.

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• A gigawatt can power roughly 1 million homes.

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Jenny Martos, a research analyst at Global Energy Monitor, notes that the U.S. gas-power buildout is now inseparable from data-center construction. The administration’s voluntary pledge is presented as a way for tech firms to avoid burdening ratepayers, while industry observers warn that the reliance on inefficient turbines could undermine climate goals.

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• “Increasingly, the US gas power buildout is getting tied directly to the data center buildout—you can’t talk about one without the other,” — Jenny Martos, a research analyst at Global Energy Monitor

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