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Planned US Gas-fired Power Plants for Data Centers Could Emit as Much as Australia, EIP Says

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At least 74 natural gas-fired power plants are planned across the US to supply electricity to the booming data center industry, a buildout that could produce annual greenhouse gas emissions roughly equal to those of Australia, according to a report released on Wednesday by the Environmental Integrity Project.

In a statement, the EIP said the report, entitled The Power Behind AI, details 74 projects, including 71 new plants and three expansions, which would generate about 143 gigawatts of electricity and emit an estimated 662 million metric tons of greenhouse gases annually if built.

EIP said the plants, designed primarily to power data centers through "behind-the-meter" connections rather than the broader electricity grid, could release about 159,000 tons of health-damaging air pollutants each year, including nitrogen oxides and fine particulate matter.

The nonprofit said many of the proposed facilities would be located in low-income communities with below-average life expectancy, potentially worsening existing health disparities. It is estimated that 40% of residents living within three miles of the 67 proposed plants are from low-income households, while at least 188 schools are located within three miles of the projects.

Texas accounts for 32 of the proposed plants, followed by Ohio with 10, Pennsylvania with seven, and West Virginia and Wyoming with four each.

EIP also warned that many planned data centers and associated power plants would be built in water-stressed regions despite requiring millions of gallons of water per day for cooling and power generation.

Among the largest proposed projects is the Portsmouth Powered Land Project in Ohio, which EIP said could emit 53 million metric tons of greenhouse gases annually. Another, planned by Fermi America in West Texas, would consist of 141 gas-fired turbines serving a large data center campus and could emit an estimated 40 million metric tons of greenhouse gases per year, according to the report.

EIP urged developers to power new data centers with renewable energy and battery storage and to avoid siting projects in water-scarce areas.

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