A slow-starting race to build underground salt caverns could hamper the AI data center boom and weaken power delivery for the massive computing facilities that typically require 99.999% reliability. About half as much new gas storage is planned than will be needed in the future, industry sources estimate.
Yes, you read that correctly, salt caverns. Manmade reservoirs thousands of feet below the surface are ideal storage structures for the volume of natural gas required to power AI data centers being built by hyperscalers and to feed the rapid growth of gas-exporters along the U.S. Gulf Coast.
U.S. natural gas output is projected to spike another 15-25% from 2024 through 2030—and continue rising—because of a doubling of gas exports and a surge in domestic demand from the data center construction wave, ongoing electrification, and manufacturing onshoring.
The lack of underground storage now threatens to become a bottleneck in the AI race against China. Without nearby gas storage facilities, customers are reliant on gas pipelines for their supplies. Pipes can fail due to weather events, landslides, and corrosion, leaving facilities without power even if gas is available elsewhere.
