HARRISBURG (AP) – A spike in demand for electricity from tech companies competing in the artificial intelligence race is upending forecasts for natural gas-fired power in the U.S., as utilities reconsider it as a major new power source. Some say it’s endangering progress toward greenhouse gas-reduction goals that scientists say are necessary to lessen the damage from burning fossil fuels that warms the planet. Some tech companies are building projects like solar, wind, geothermal or battery storage. But industry decision-makers are also turning to natural gas for what they say is a cheap and reliable source of power. New gas-fired capacity is being sought in the mid-Atlantic region, especially PA and Ohio. In PA, the former Homer City coal-fired power plant is being transformed into a gas-fired station that’s expected to supply a data center — and got a $5 million state grant to do it.
