Tech giants Microsoft and Meta are rapidly building natural gas‑powered plants to support their data centers, a move that has pushed construction costs 66% higher over the past two years. The spike, from less than $1,500 per kilowatt in 2023 to $2,157 per kilowatt last year, also lengthens project timelines by 23%. The surge reflects a broader shift as data center operators, once favoring renewable‑powered sites, now seek the reliability of gas turbines amid rising electricity demand driven by AI workloads. According to a new report from BloombergNEF , the cost to build a combined‑cycle gas turbine plant has risen from less than $1,500 per kilowatt in 2023 to $2,157 per kilowatt last year. Key figures from the report include: Construction cost increase of 66% over two years. Project completion time extended by 23%. Electricity demand projected to grow 2.7×, from 40 GW today to 106 GW by 2035. Gas turbines account for up to 30% of a new plant’s cost. Gas turbine prices are up 195% over 2019 levels, stretching waitlists into the early 2030s. The Trump administration has urged data center operators to "bring their own power", a stance that has intensified the push for new gas projects. Meanwhile, Google is exploring renewables paired with long‑duration storage from Form Energy , whose iron‑air batteries can deliver power for up to 100 hours. With data center demand projected to raise electricity consumption 2.7× to 106 GW by 2035, the natural gas sector faces a tightening supply of turbines and higher capital costs, prompting some operators to diversify into renewables and storage.