A subsidiary of SoftBank, SB Energy, is expected to build a massive 9.2 gigawatt natural gas-fired power plant on the Ohio-Kentucky border. According to a report from Bloomberg, if completed, it would be the largest power plant in the United States. This facility would be capable of powering around 7.5 million homes.
The project carries a price tag of 33 billion dollars, which is more expensive than recent natural gas-fired power plants as costs have skyrocketed. It remains unclear who will ultimately foot the bill, though traditionally rate-payers have shouldered the burden for new generating capacity.
SB Energy is a partner with OpenAI in the Stargate project. The company did not specify whether the new power plant would feed directly into the general electrical grid or if it would be dedicated to powering data centers. OpenAI and SoftBank are also in the process of building a proof of concept data center at the former General Motors Lordstown automotive assembly plant.
A power plant of this scale is likely to take years, perhaps a decade, to complete even before accounting for the current shortage of natural gas turbines. If completed, the project could emit approximately 15 million metric tons of carbon dioxide per year based on calculations using public energy-use metrics. When including methane leaks from the natural gas supply chain, the total climate impact could be even greater.