AI/Data Center Boom Not Only Good for Midstream but Turbine Makers
Speaking of data centers and AI (artificial intelligence), natural gas drillers and pipeline companies are not the only beneficiaries of the huge power requirements needed by these monsters. The companies that manufacture turbines for gas-fired power plants are seeing a spike in demand. Mitsubishi Power Ltd., one of those manufacturers, sees the world ordering an eye-popping 50% more gas turbines annually through 2026, compared with the past three years, driven in large part by data center growth. Mitsubishi is the #1 provider of gas turbines. The company says that globally, there will be 60 gigawatts worth of equipment orders every year from 2024 through 2026, which is up from an average annual capacity of 40 gigawatts sold between 2021 and 2023. Read More “AI/Data Center Boom Not Only Good for Midstream but Turbine Makers”
The great folks at Steel Nation, headquartered in Canonsburg, PA, have built over 2,200 compressor stations and other structures for the oil and gas industry in the Marcellus/Utica (and beyond) over the past 17 years. Yesterday, Steel Nation announced it has launched a new division to build electric microgrids for companies looking to create their own on-site power plants to ensure their operations run efficiently 24/7/365. The new division, Steel Nation Microgrids, will work on projects from small 20 MW microgrid centers up to large hyperscale data centers that can require over a gigawatt of reliable on-site electricity to run AI facilities. This is exciting stuff! 
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.