Digital gold rush could drive demand for Wyoming’s growing ‘low-carbon’ natural gas industry

The data center boom continues in Wyoming, and the state’s natural gas industry may play an increasing role in powering the computing systems with electricity.

Wyoming’s largest natural gas producer, PureWest, says it’s getting into the data center power supply game and partnering with two other firms on a project near Evanston. For its part, PureWest must ensure its fossil fuel product will have minimal carbon emissions to meet data centers’ energy preferences. 

To do that, PureWest says it will obtain a globally recognized “low-carbon verification” certificate, which means the company has met the rigors of ensuring there are no rogue emissions in its natural gas supply chain, from its production wells south of Pinedale to the gas-fired power generators near Evanston.

The project will initially generate 150 megawatts of electricity, then scale up to 1,200 megawatts, delivering the power to at least one data center developed by Prometheus Hyperscale, according to the companies. 

One megawatt is enough electricity to power about 750 homes.

Frontier Carbon Solutions, which is partnering with the U.S. Department Energy and the University of Wyoming on a “large-scale” commercial carbon storage hub near Granger, will capture and permanently store the natural gas generator carbon emissions.

“We’re very excited to help bootstrap these [data center] projects with verified low-carbon natural gas,” PureWest CEO Christopher Valdez told WyoFile.

Though the project partners are not required by state or federal law to certify the natural gas as low carbon, or to capture and store the gas-fired generator emissions, Valdez said, it’s what data center customers demand. And PureWest wants to be a player in the market.

“It’s going to be tied to the requirements of the ultimate consumers — the clients of this data center,” he said. “It’s a demand pool, and it’s specific to our local markets.”

Other companies

Anschutz Corporation, whose subsidiary is building the $5 billion Chokecherry Sierra Madre wind energy project in Carbon County and the $3 billion TransWest Express transmission line to connect it the Southwest, quietly rolled out a tentative plan in April to also add 3,200 megawatts of gas-fired generation and a 1,000 megawatt solar generation facility, according to a filing with the state.

The Seminoe Generating Station and the Walcott Generating Station would power “one or two” data center clients, and could include “on-site carbon capture and storage,” according to company statements and information on Anschutz subsidiary Power Company of Wyoming’s website. All of the facilities would be located in Carbon County. So far, there are no formal data center partners to announce, a company spokesperson told WyoFile.

Sierra Club Wyoming Chapter Director Rob Joyce estimates the natural gas plant would be among the largest in the U.S., and his organization is concerned about greenhouse gas emissions and other airborne pollutants.

“We don’t have assurances that they’re actually going to capture [and store] the emissions like they’re saying,” Joyce told WyoFile. “I’m always skeptical about that kind of thing.”

Not all environmental groups are skeptical of this market-driven trend. 

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Jonah Energy, which also produces natural gas in the Pinedale Anticline in west-central Wyoming, was among the first in the state to gain a low-carbon verification for its natural gas. The Environmental Defense Fund has worked with Jonah and other oil and gas operators for years to support the installation of equipment and best practices that prevent leaks of methane — a potent greenhouse gas.

“Wyoming’s natural gas producers have a real opportunity to lead in a global market looking for lower-emissions energy,” EDF Regulatory and Legislative Manager John Rutecki told WyoFile via email. “If Wyoming wants to stay competitive in powering next-generation industries like data centers, those efforts must be backed by robust, transparent emissions measurement and verification and strong statewide standards.”