The Washington Post · February 24, 2025
Energy and tech companies like Meta, Microsoft, and X are pushing their ambitious green-energy goals aside and rushing to build new natural gas plants across the country, amid escalating demand for power and Washington’s changing political winds.
“Now, the energy demands of tech firms and manufacturers are so acute and the Trump administration’s rollback of climate rules so aggressive, that even coal is making a comeback. But the biggest push is for gas, with more than 220 plants in various stages of development nationwide. They are often pitched as a bridge until more clean power is available, sometimes with promises the plants will eventually be equipped with nascent technology that traps greenhouse gas emissions. But the timeline for installing such “carbon capture” is vague.
“These companies are building these massive new gas plants that are going to be there for 30 to 50 years,” said Bill Weihl, a former director of sustainability at Facebook and founder of the nonprofit ClimateVoice. “That’s not a bridge. It is a giant bomb in our carbon budget.”
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