- Natural gas is emerging as a key power source for energy hungry data centers
- Microgrid technology provides a way for them to put that fuel to work
- Natural gas microgrid supplier Enchanted Rock thinks the tech can serve as a key bridge until modular nuclear reactors become more widely available
Data centers have a power problem on their hands. While they’re eyeing options including micro nuclear reactors, that tech is five to 10 years away from becoming a practical reality. But there’s another micro technology that could bridge the gap: on-campus microgrids powered by natural gas.
Natural gas is undoubtedly on the radar for data center builders looking to supplement or circumvent the traditional electrical grid. Allan Schurr, CCO of natural gas microgrid vendor Enchanted Rock, shed some light on how exactly these facilities might put the gas to work once it gets there.
Schurr told Fierce that microgrids are designed to supply sufficient electrical power to fully serve a set geographical area, whether that be an entire community or a data center campus. When run, it can either carry the entire load or run as a supplement to the traditional power grid.
The latter use case is essentially peak shaving – that is, using the microgrid to handle spikes in power demand so that the traditional grid isn’t periodically slammed. Peak shaving (as one reader very kindly reminded us) is not new– telcos have been using the technique for decades – but it is starting to trend among data center operators as they fight to accommodate fluctuating artificial intelligence (AI) workloads.
According to Schurr, Enchanted Rock runs about 300 microgrids around the country today, and it is currently building one for a Microsoft data center in San Jose, California. In addition to data centers, Schurr said it is also chatting up gas suppliers that “are hearing from data centers directly but need to figure out a strategy for using this gas.”
While he couldn’t provide exact details about the company’s discussions with data centers, Schurr said, “I think in the next 12 months we will be announcing many deals. It’s not just a one or two opportunity…it’s just so widespread.”
Choices and limitations
But why would a data center opt to use natural gas rather than, say, battery power or a diesel generator?
Schurr argued it has to do with emissions and how data center operators are trying to balance their insatiable need for power with sustainability targets. He noted that there are two primary categories of emissions – carbon and local – and stated that natural gas performs better than diesel on both fronts.
Third party data seems to back this up. California has some of the strictest emissions standards in the U.S. and yet Enchanted Rock’s natural gas-powered reciprocating engine managed to get its seal of approval in 2022.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Energy Information Administration notes on its website that “burning natural gas for energy results in fewer emissions of nearly all types of air pollutants and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions than burning coal or petroleum products to produce an equal amount of energy.” However, it also pointed out that natural gas accounted for around a third of U.S. energy-related carbon emissions in 2022 and highlighted the toll that drilling for natural gas takes on the environment.
But Schurr noted there are renewable sources of natural gas, such as captured methane produced by trash dumps and other waste facilities. This can be pushed into the gas pipeline and used just as effectively, he said.
And in terms of spinning up power, natural gas microgrids can light up faster than traditional electrical connections which are mired in a backlog.
“It’s about 18 months by the time all the equipment gets ordered, the gas line extended to the site and construction can be complete,” Schurr said. While that might sound like a long time, “that’s a lot faster than the electric grid can in some cases get on board. So, it can provide a bridge period of a couple of years and then it can revert into this flexible backup power role.”
Of course, there are some limitations. Natural gas availability is constrained to where pipelines exist and there’s adequate supply. “You have to be able to contract for the right kind of gas supply that gives you the certainty of delivery and the competitive pricing,” he said.
Overall, Schurr said the company views natural gas as a bridge technology.
“We’re big believers that nuclear is going to be the long term zero-carbon source, but it’s going to take us a long term to do that,” he concluded. “Gas is the right transition for doing that.”