The AI boom has a gas problem. A WIRED investigation found that 11 data center campuses being built for OpenAI, Meta, Microsoft, and xAI could pump out over 129 million tons of greenhouse gases every year.
These facilities bypass the grid entirely. They generate their own power from natural gas, a setup called "behind-the-meter" generation. Companies are going this route because grid connections take years to secure, and political resistance is forcing Big Tech to consider alternative power sources like nuclear to meet demand.
Data center turbines don't cycle like normal power plants. They run constantly. A Crusoe permit application states its facility is "unlike a traditional power plant" because "power requirements do not vary significantly." Energy researcher Jon Koomey told WIRED that a shortage of efficient turbines is pushing developers toward dirtier models. The AI compute is valuable enough that companies can absorb the energy costs. Those costs just don't appear on their balance sheets. They appear in places like South Memphis, where the NAACP has sued xAI over turbines polluting a predominantly Black, low-income neighborhood. This legal pushback is part of a broader trend, highlighted by Maine banning AI data centers amid a 58% electricity bill surge.