A spike in demand for electricity from tech companies competing in the artificial intelligence race is upending forecasts for natural gas-fired power in the U.S., as utilities reconsider it as a major new power source.
That is not what many scientists and climate activists envisioned in the fight against climate change. And it is endangering progress on the greenhouse gas-reduction goals that scientists say are necessary to manage the damage from burning fossil fuels that warms the planet.
Across the nation, tech companies are snapping up real estate and seeking new power projects to feed their energy-hungry operations.
In some cases, Big Tech is building climate-friendlier projects like solar, wind, geothermal or battery storage.
But industry decision-makers are also turning to natural gas for what they say is a cheap and reliable source of power, raising the prospect that gas-fired power will play a bigger role—and for a longer period of time—than even they had anticipated.
“Gas is growing faster now and in the medium term than ever before,” says Corianna Mah, a power and renewables analyst at data analytics firm Enverus.
