Data Centers Fuel Surge in US Gas Projects

Research finds data center demand has driven a 25-fold increase in gas projects over the past two years.

Jan. 28, 2026 at 6:39pm

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According to new research from Global Energy Monitor, gas projects in the US pipeline explicitly linked to data centers increased by almost 25 times over the past two years. This surge in gas-fired power infrastructure to fuel data centers could increase the US gas fleet by nearly 50 percent, raising concerns about the environmental impact of growing data center energy demands.

Why it matters

The rapid growth in data center-linked gas projects highlights the significant energy demands of the tech industry, which could lead to a major increase in US greenhouse gas emissions if not properly regulated. While natural gas is cleaner than coal, the scale of new gas infrastructure poses risks around methane leaks and overall carbon emissions.

The details

Global Energy Monitor's research found that more than a third of new gas-fired power demand in the US is explicitly linked to data centers. This includes both on-site gas turbines as well as new gas plants added to the grid to support increased electricity needs from data centers. The Trump administration's rollback of pollution regulations on the oil and gas industry could exacerbate the environmental impact of this data center-driven gas boom.

  • In early 2024, Global Energy Monitor logged around 85 gigawatts of gas-fired power in the US development pipeline, with just over 4 gigawatts explicitly for data centers.
  • By 2025, more than 97 gigawatts of the tracked gas power demand was for data centers—almost 25 times higher than the 2024 figures.

The players

Global Energy Monitor

A San Francisco-based nonprofit that tracks oil and gas developments.

Clean Air Task Force

A nonprofit that works to reduce emissions, though they were not involved in the Global Energy Monitor research.

Trump administration

The current US presidential administration, which has encouraged data center build-out while rolling back pollution regulations on the oil and gas industry.

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What they’re saying

“The implications are huge when you're talking about this size of a build-out.”

— Jonathan Banks, Senior climate adviser

“About a year and a half ago, we started to see this increase in proposals for data centers specifically.”

— Jenny Martos, Research analyst

“Gas is cleaner when burnt than coal, but when you're talking about this much gas, you're talking about a lot of CO2 associated with it, too.”

— Jonathan Banks, Senior climate adviser

What’s next

The number of gas projects under construction that are most likely to be completed would add just under 30 gigawatts of gas-fired power to the grid, with an additional 159 gigawatts in the preconstruction planning and financing stages.

The takeaway

The data center industry's surging energy demands are driving a major expansion of gas infrastructure in the US, raising concerns about the environmental impact if not properly regulated. Reducing methane leaks and improving energy efficiency in data centers will be crucial to mitigating the climate risks of this gas boom.