Microsoft Spends $27M on Land in NC Near Gas Pipes – Data Center?
We spotted a story that piqued our curiosity and appealed to our hobby of connecting dots to figure out what is happening. Microsoft has reportedly purchased 1,385 acres in Woodsdale Township in Person County, North Carolina, for $26.85 million. The company is hush-hush about its future plans for the site, but we think we have a pretty good guess about what will be built there: a data center. Read More “Microsoft Spends $27M on Land in NC Near Gas Pipes – Data Center?”
Since 2014, the share of U.S. electricity generation from natural gas in the summer has increased every year, increasing from 29% in 2014 to 45% in 2024 (see 
Almost overnight, the conversation concerning power use in the U.S. changed. For years and years, electric power demand has been fairly static. Then, seemingly from nowhere, came the rise of AI and data centers, which are power-hungry. A year ago, we weren’t talking about data centers. Now, hardly a day goes by without a story on MDN (in mainstream news!) about powergen and data centers/AI. We have another story on this topic, which illustrates the dramatic growth of data centers in the PJM region. 
Dominion Energy plans to build four small “peaker” electric generating plants in Chesterfield County, VA, near Richmond (see 
We are super excited to bring you the news that Balico, LLC has proposed building a gigantic, massive data center in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. Sound familiar? We’ll get to the location in a moment. The data center would be powered by its own on-site gas-fired power plant complex, with 15 30-MW Mitsubishi gas turbines. Truly incredible! We have not heard of a gas-fired power plant this big in the entire country. It’s twice as big as most large gas-fired plants. Pittsylvania County is where the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) terminates and connects with Williams’ Transco pipeline. Both MVP and Transco flow Marcellus/Utica molecules. This massive data center will use enormous amounts of M-U molecules if built. It feels like Christmas came early! 
Ever notice how politicians like to blame others when their own policies create havoc and chaos? When you block new gas-fired power plants that provide more electricity for growing demand and pretend unreliable renewables will step in to save the day, there are negative consequences, like the price of electricity soaring through the roof (see 
Yesterday, MDN reported on Range Resources’ third quarter update (see 
Last week, MDN brought you a story about a developing issue of who, ultimately, should pay to build out new electricity sources for data centers (and AI) that increasingly use huge amounts of power (see 
S&P Global Ratings analysts estimate that U.S. data centers’ increasing energy demands will lead to additional natural gas demand of between 3 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) and 6 Bcf/d by 2030, from a starting point of almost none today. The analysts believe additional demand from data centers should contribute to “at least a decade” of supply growth, with pipeline companies located in gas fields near data center hotspots reaping the most rewards. S&P says short pipelines offer the best options for meeting a rapid scaleup in demand. 
In a post published yesterday by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the agency noted that construction costs rose slightly for solar and wind, but dropped for natural gas in 2022 (the most recent year with available stats). Average construction costs for solar generators increased by 1.7% in 2022. For wind turbines construction costs increased by 1.6%. Average costs for natural gas-fired power decreased 11%. However, the first chart at the top of the post shows something *not* highlighted by the EIA—that overall construction costs for natural gas are FAR lower than building new solar and wind. 
It seems the left’s proclamations that it had “won” the so-called “war on coal” were premature. So says none other than the lefties at Bloomberg. You may remember that Michael Bloomberg, the owner of the Bloomberg News Service, had donated over $1 billion to the odious (anti-American) Sierra Club in a bid to shut down every last coal-fired power plant in the United States. We’re far along the curve to completing that dubious goal. Except now, new coal-fired plants are popping up in other countries, and coal use is EXPANDING, not contracting. So, the only country truly harmed by Bloomberg’s mission is the United States. Bloomberg’s own news service is now admitting the truth—that coal is sticking around because without it, the lights would go out. 
AES Indiana, formerly known as Indianapolis Power & Light Company, is a utility company providing electric service to the city of Indianapolis. It is a subsidiary and largest utility of AES Corporation. In August, AES Indiana said that it wants to invest $1.1 billion in Pike County, IN, to convert the company’s two remaining coal-fired power plants to run natural gas instead (see