Gas-Turbine Prices Surge, Crimping Efforts to Power Data Centers

Surging demand for electricity is driving up prices for natural gas turbines, complicating efforts to supply power to a wave of data centers needed to support artificial intelligence.

Turbines prices will reach about $600 per kilowatt by the end of next year, up 195% from 2019, according to a report Wednesday from consultancy Wood Mackenzie Ltd. Global orders for the systems reached about 100 gigawatts by the end of 2025, but total manufacturing capacity is only 60 gigawatts to 70 gigawatts annually, per the report.