In its S-1 filing with the SEC, Anthropic disclosed that competition for electrical supply and data center sites with adequate power is intense, and that some planned data centers will rely on on-site natural gas turbines for electricity. The filing also states that rising global temperatures could increase the company's operating costs, even as gas turbine shortages push some developers toward less efficient on-site generators.
theverge.com
· 2026-10-26
A new study from the Houston Advanced Research Center models what happens to Texas air quality if all currently planned data centers connect to the grid using its expected energy mix. Under that scenario, fine particle pollution would more than triple to its highest level since 2006, NOx emissions would rise 136 percent, and CO2 pollution would climb 90 percent above 2025 levels within five years.
theverge.com
· 2026-10-21
A new Wood Mackenzie report finds that four-hour battery storage systems cost less than open-cycle natural gas turbines in all 43 markets surveyed across every continent. The firm projects battery costs will keep falling while gas turbine electricity costs rise, partly due to AI data center developers buying up available turbines and driving procurement waits to two-to-four years, with closed-cycle models backlogged into the early 2030s. Separately, solar was found to be the cheapest new power source in every surveyed market, though tariffs and import restrictions are pressuring prices in North America.
techcrunch.com
· 2026-10-09
A new Wood Mackenzie levelized cost of electricity report finds four-hour battery storage beats open-cycle gas turbines on cost in every one of 43 markets analyzed worldwide. In the Middle East and Africa, storage costs are projected to drop a further 33% to $80/MWh by 2035, while China remains the cheapest storage market, over 55% below the rest of Asia Pacific. Separately, single-axis tracker solar is now the lowest-cost new-build power source in 43 of 48 markets studied, with onshore wind leading in the remaining five.
solarpowerworldonline.com
· 2026-10-08
Data center developers are facing long waits for gas turbines needed to power AI infrastructure, prompting new entrants including startup Parallax and Elon Musk to move into power generation. The shortage has intensified interest in alternative manufacturing approaches, such as 3-D printing, that could speed up turbine production.
wsj.com
· 2026-09-24
American Supercritical, a startup founded by Simon Shuham and others, emerged from stealth with $8 million in funding for technology that uses supercritical carbon dioxide to boost the efficiency of gas turbines powering data centers. The company plans to retrofit simple-cycle turbines—common at data centers but far less efficient than combined-cycle plants—so they generate more electricity without increasing fuel use, though the turbines will still emit carbon pollution from burning gas.
wired.com
· 2026-09-23
Elon Musk confirmed that SpaceX is constructing a foundry in Bastrop, Texas, dedicated to casting turbine blades and vanes, a notoriously difficult manufacturing bottleneck in gas turbine production. Musk said the in-house casting operation could cut up to 18 months off the timeline for bringing new natural gas turbines online, supplementing solar power as SpaceX and Tesla scale up 100GW/year of solar capacity.
techcrunch.com
· 2026-08-30
Residents and advocacy group Stand.earth allege that the DataOne data center in Vineland, New Jersey — tied to a $19.4 billion Nebius-Microsoft GPU deal — has been running dozens of unpermitted gas turbines and building an unpermitted 1.5-million-gallon LNG storage tank near two schools. Locals say they only learned the site was a data center after the Microsoft deal became public, and complaints about nighttime noise and air pollution led to a delayed town hall in January 2026, months after construction began.
tomshardware.com
· 2026-08-29
GoKawiil