Key Impact Points:
- Chevron is advancing plans to develop data centers in the U.S. powered primarily by natural gas, aiming for operations by 2027-2028.
- U.S. data center electricity demand is expected to triple within three years due to the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence technologies.
- Big Tech’s massive electricity needs are reshaping the U.S. power industry, significantly boosting natural gas consumption.
Rising Demand from Big Tech
Chevron has entered permitting and engineering phases for multiple U.S. sites to construct data centers alongside dedicated power generation facilities.
Daniel Droog, vice president of power solutions at Chevron, emphasized strong market interest:
“The customer interest is high. It’s really trying to intersect where they have that level of need because they’re building new or expanding facilities, at a rate that’s ahead of the power supply.”
Powering Large-scale Data Centers
New data centers today require around-the-clock electricity similar to a mid-sized city, with some facilities 50 times larger than traditional data centers.
Change the World - Subscribe Now
Chevron aims to develop sites with around 1 GW of capacity, set to come online between 2027 and 2028.
Droog highlighted Chevron’s strategic focus:
“We’re really focused on scale, speed and reliability.”
Natural Gas Gains Popularity
Chevron’s data centers will primarily rely on natural gas, which is cheaper and quicker to deploy than alternative sources like nuclear power. Despite previous Big Tech commitments to renewable energy, natural gas is increasingly appealing due to its abundance and rapid deployment potential in the U.S.
Chevron has seven GE Vernova gas turbines scheduled for delivery in 2026 to support these projects, addressing significant backlogs in turbine production across the industry.
Some sites may incorporate carbon capture technology or renewable energy components, reflecting broader sustainability considerations.
Related Article: Microsoft Builds First-Ever Data Centers With Wood to Reduce Carbon Emissions
