Anthropic Buys $3.4B in Gas Turbines to Secure Data Center Power

Anthropic has agreed to spend $3.4 billion on natural gas turbines to supply its growing computational needs. The company is taking over a two-year-old order for Caterpillar generators initially placed by equipment supplier OnePWR. The hardware can generate up to 1.7 gigawatts of electricity, representing the largest known purchase of power gear by a standalone artificial intelligence lab.

The purchase bypasses Anthropic's traditional operating model of renting third-party computing capacity. In an S-1 filing from May, the startup revealed it pays xAI $1.25 billion each month through May 2029 for computing power. OnePWR was unable to arrange the necessary financing to finalize its original turbine deal, prompting Anthropic to step in and buy the equipment directly from Caterpillar.

Tight energy markets pushed Anthropic toward direct hardware ownership before its planned public debut. Waiting times to connect newly built facilities to regional electric grids can extend into the next decade. Similarly, delivery backlogs for commercial natural gas turbines now reach into the early 2030s, leaving firms few options to secure timely electricity.

Anthropic is following tech giants like Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta, which are turning to on-site natural gas installations instead of relying solely on public utilities. The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence clusters has revitalized domestic natural gas demand. By 2035, American data centers are projected to burn more natural gas than Germany and Japan use together.

Investing directly in power generation shields AI developers from infrastructure bottlenecks, but it introduces major commodity risks. Hyperscalers face potential fuel volatility, with some analyst forecasts anticipating regional natural gas prices could more than triple before 2030. These ongoing operational expenses could alter the margins of tech firms running captive power assets.