Chevron, Engine No. 1 to develop gas-fired power plants for AI
Investment firm Engine No. 1 and US major Chevron said January 28 they had partnered to develop scalable and reliable gas-fired power solutions for US data centres.
Early actions by the new Trump administration, they said, are providing the impetus for investment that leverages energy abundance in the US to enable “American AI leadership.” Alongside GE Vernova, the partnership is aiming to establish the first multi gigawatt-scale co-located power plant and data centre of Trump’s second term as US president.
“Energy is the key to America’s AI dominance,” Engine No. 1 founder and chief investment officer Chris James said. “By using abundant domestic natural gas to generate electricity directly connected to data centres, we can secure AI leadership, drive productivity gains across our economy and restore America’s standing as an industrial superpower.”
The first projects, which the companies refer to as “power foundries,” are expected to leverage seven US-made GE Vernova 7HA natural gas turbines, secured under a slot reservation agreement, on an accelerated timeline. The projects are expected to serve co-located data centres in the US Southeast, Midwest and West regions and will be developed as off-grid facilities, serving only the host data centres and eliminating the risk of driving consumer power rates higher.
The joint development plans to deliver up to 4 GW of capacity, with initial in-service targeted by the end of 2027 and the potential for project expansion. The projects are expected to be designed with the flexibility to integrate lower carbon solutions, such as carbon capture and storage (CCS) to capture more than 90% of the CO2 emissions from the turbines and renewable energy resources.