By Jeffrey A. Newman Esq.
Big data tech companies have signed many deals to power their data centers including gas-fired power in 2025 as well as solar and battery deals to fuel the data centers across the country. Gas fired power sppears to by number one for the data centers and will continue for years, according to the International ENergy Agency (IEA). “Global electricity generation to supply data centres is projected to grow from 460 TWh in 2024 to over 1 000 TWh in 2030 and 1 300 TWh in 2035 in the Base Case. Over the next five years, renewables meet nearly half of the additional demand, followed by natural gas and coal, with nuclear starting to play an increasingly important role towards the end of this decade and beyond.” https://www.iea.org/reports/energy-and-ai/energy-supply-for-ai
Gas is currently the largest source of elexctricity for data centers in the US and has a share of over 40%. . Renewables are the second-largest source of additional electricity supply, adding 110 TWh to the data centre electricity supply between 2024 and 2030. This is mainly due to the continuing increase in the share of wind and solar PV in the electricity mix of most states, as well as some data centre operators investing in co-located renewables
Dominion Energy’s power generation fleet, which supplies power to the “data center alley” in Northern Virginia, was 44% natural gas in 2024 but the utility plans to add 47 GW of generation and energy storage over the next 20 years “roughly 80% of which will be carbon-free.”
Entergy’s plan includes more than 19 GW of new natural gas capacity and the utility is investing in clean power with 2 GW of solar.
Meta is engaging utiities in avarious types of power including renewables. It has apparently matched 100% of its electricity consumption with “clean and renewable energy” since 2020, and in 2025 the has signed agreements to secure solar and wind energy from several providers including Invenergy, Alliant Entergy, Enbridge, AES Corporation and Zelestra. As part of the Hyperion project, Meta is working with Entergy to bring at least 1.5 GW of new renewable energy to the grid.
Microsoft signed an agreement with Brookfield Renewable Partners to develop over 10.5 GW of new renewable energy capacity its new data centers in Wisconsin will be powered by WE Energies, a utility that sources about two thirds of its power from fossil fuels and plans at least two new natural gas power plants.
Jeffrey Newman is a whistleblower lawyer, whose law firm represents whistleblowers revealing violations of export controls, tariff evasions, money laundering, healthcare fraud and other kinds of WB cases. The firm represents individuals both in the United States and other countries. Mr. Newman and his firm also represent physicians and other healthcare providers who become whistleblowers in healthcare fraud cases. Whistleblower laws in the U.S. allow individuals anywhere with information about export control violations or tariff fraud to reveal the information under The False Claims act or through the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Whistleblower Program. The Firm’s website is at www.JeffNewmanLaw.com and attorney Newman can be reached at Jeff@Jeffnewmanlaw.com or at 978-880-4758
