What will power the data center boom?

A guide to natural gas, LNG, CNG, propane and other fuels for onsite and behind-the-meter data center power.

Onsite power has moved from contingency plan to mainstream strategy. Data center developers as of September of 2026 have announced roughly 101 GW of onsite natural gas generation to get around grid interconnection queues, and analysts expect behind-the-meter systems to supply a quarter to a third of new data center power demand through 2030.

Most of the industry conversation is about the generation technology: turbine or engine, fuel cell or microgrid. But every one of those machines sits at the end of a fuel supply chain, and the fuel decision shapes cost, schedule, permitting, and uptime as much as the generator does. This guide covers the fuels in use today, what each one requires, and where each fits.

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