New Amazon data center stokes worry in the US

Amazon has confirmed its investment in a massive natural-gas-burning power plant intended to power a new data center in Pecos County, Texas. This facility has the potential to become the largest single source of climate pollution in the United States, according to regulatory records showing it could release 33 million tons of carbon dioxide annually. This development comes as tech giants, including Amazon, are rapidly building data centers to meet the escalating demand for artificial intelligence services, which require immense amounts of energy.

Amazon spokesperson Margaret Callahan stated that the Pecos County data center would be powered by new on-site generation to avoid increasing electricity costs for Texas residents. However, this move presents a challenge to Amazon's commitment to effectively eliminate its planet-warming emissions by 2040 as part of the Climate Pledge, an agreement co-founded by the company. Rising emissions from AI data centers have been acknowledged by Amazon as a potential hindrance to its climate goals.

To circumvent potential delays in connecting to existing electrical utilities, data center developers are increasingly opting to construct their own dedicated, on-site power plants, with gas-burning options often being the quickest to implement. Amazon recently acquired the Pecos County site where a developer is constructing the gas-burning plant, which will utilize 35 natural-gas turbines to generate up to 7.65 gigawatts of power. The plant will not initially connect to the wider electricity grid, and Amazon is exploring solar energy and battery storage for the facility, which is expected to create thousands of jobs. President Donald Trump has previously supported such power plant constructions for data centers, issuing an executive order to expedite their development.

Michael Thomas, founder of Cleanview, a company tracking data center energy infrastructure, described the plant as a