The AI boom needs electricity, and it needs it yesterday. Rather than wait years in utility interconnection queues, data center operators are taking a shortcut: building their own natural gas power plants, often with minimal permitting and little public input.
According to data from Cleanview, at least 57 off-grid natural gas plants have been proposed or built specifically to power data centers across the US. Their combined capacity sits at roughly 73 gigawatts, enough to power tens of millions of homes.
The Colossus problem
No project illustrates the tension better than xAI’s Colossus facilities in Mississippi. The company’s Colossus 1 site began operations in June 2024 using up to 35 gas turbines that were, at the time, unpermitted. Partial permitting only came later, after legal pressure forced the issue.
The sequel is even bigger. Colossus 2, located in Southaven, Mississippi, features 27 gas turbines capable of generating up to 495 megawatts. The facility was installed without initial permits.
