According to the Environmental Integrity Project, at least 74 gas-fired power plants - 71 newbuild projects and 3 plant expansions - totalling 143 GW are planned across the US to provide energy for the rapidly growing data centre industry. 32 of these 74 plants would be located in Texas, while many proposed power plants would be in the Ohio River Valley, with 10 in Ohio, 6 in western Pennsylvania, and 4 in West Virginia. Some developers have turned their attention farther west, with 4 of the proposed plants in Wyoming.
These 74 new gas-fired power plants would release nearly 662 Mt/year of greenhouse gas pollution, the equivalent of 140 million cars and trucks driving for a year or the emissions from Australia in 2023. In addition, they could also release 159 kt/year of health-harming air pollutants, including 44 kt/year of NOx and 33 kt/year of fine particulate matter.
By 2028, data centres could consume up to 12% of total electricity in the United States, up from 4.4% in 2023. About 40% of power for data centres came from gas power plants in 2024, with approximately 24% from wind and solar, 20% from nuclear, and 15% from coal.
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