Activist Investor Engine 1 Will Build Gas Plants for AI with Chevron
The activist investor Engine No.1 is now teaming up with Chevron to build natural gas-fired power plants to meet soaring AI-driven electricity demand.
OilPrice is reporting that Engine No. 1, the investment firm that four years ago picked a fight with U.S. oil and gas supermajor Exxon over climate – and won – is now teaming up with the other supermajor, Chevron, to build natural gas-fired power plants to meet soaring AI-driven electricity demand.
In a sign of changing times and a signal that investors continue to chase money and profitability, Engine No. 1 sees a huge opportunity in the AI-led power demand growth in the United States.
The Investment Firm That Took On Exxon
The hedge fund grabbed quite a few headlines in 2021 when it won a proxy fight at Exxon.
Engine No. 1, which launched in December 2020, scored a huge victory for activist shareholders at Exxon’s annual general meeting in May 2021, winning three board seats despite the tiny stake that it holds in the oil supermajor.
Back then, the Engine No. 1 win signaled an unprecedented shift of shareholder sentiment in the oil and gas industry. The vote, according to observers, signaled the continued displeasure of a growing number of shareholders with how Exxon was handling the push for lower-carbon energy and called to do more to mitigate the impact of its business on the environment.
Engine No. 1 was demanding from Exxon a proactive long-term strategy to address the threats and opportunities facing the company “in a changing world.”
That was four years ago.
Since then, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the oil and gas price spikes that followed, the backlash against ESG investing and portfolio emission targets in the United States, and the advancements in AI and the surge of data center needs have changed the world dramatically, again.
Engine No. 1 has also changed its primary objective as an investment firm. It says now that it “builds and invests in companies that are driving the reindustrialization of the United States.”
Partnering with Chevron is not a pivot, Engine No. founder and chief investment officer Chris James tells the Financial Times.
“The Exxon campaign was focused on governance and capital allocation as a way to create value for shareholders,” the executive told FT.
“It was not about ideology or fossil fuels or renewables,” James said, after this week’s announcement that the investment firm is partnering with Chevron and GE Vernova to power U.S. data centers with natural gas power plants.
Engine No. 1 and Chevron said they would create a new company to develop scalable, reliable power solutions for U.S.-based data centers running on U.S. natural gas.
The joint development, together with GE Vernova, which will supply U.S.-made natural gas turbines, aims to establish the first multi-gigawatt-scale co-located power plant and data center during President Trump’s second term.
“Early actions of the Trump Administration are setting the critical foundation to encourage investment leveraging America’s energy abundance to enable America’s AI leadership,” the three companies said in a joint statement.
The projects are expected to serve co-located data centers in the U.S. Southeast, Midwest, and West regions.
The joint development plans to deliver up to 4 gigawatts (GW), the equivalent of powering 3-3.5 million U.S. homes, with initial in-service targeted by the end of 2027 and potential for project expansion beyond this capacity. The projects are expected to be designed with the flexibility to integrate lower carbon solutions, such as carbon capture and storage (CCS) and renewable energy resources, the companies said.
“Energy is the key to America’s AI dominance. By using abundant domestic natural gas to generate electricity directly connected to data centers, we can secure AI leadership, drive productivity gains across our economy and restore America’s standing as an industrial superpower,” Engine No.1’s James commented.
Chevron’s CEO Mike Wirth added, “President Trump’s pro-American energy policies and commitment to energy and AI dominance give us the confidence to invest in projects that will create American jobs and strengthen our national security.”
Natural Gas Becomes Big Winner of the AI Boom
The project highlights the opportunities that energy firms, the supply chain, and Wall Street investors see in powering the future of AI and data centers.
Data center load growth in the U.S. has tripled over the past decade and is projected to double or triple by 2028, the U.S. Department of Energy said in December, commenting on a report produced by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
After two decades of flat power consumption, U.S. electricity demand rose by 2% in 2024 and is set to rise at a similar pace this year and next, the EIA says.
Higher U.S. power demand due to AI advancements and data center construction is set to unleash a new boom in the buildout of natural gas power plants to provide reliable 24/7 electricity.
U.S. power-generating companies are announcing plans for the highest volume of new natural gas-fired capacity in years.
Case in point: Chevron’s new venture to power data centers with co-located gas-fired plants, in partnership with the investor that took on Exxon and won.
Everyday your story is being told by someone. Who is telling your story? Who are you telling your story to?
Email your sustainable story ideas, professional press releases or petro-powered podcast submissions to thecontentcreationstudios(AT)gmail(DOT)com.
#thecrudelife promotes a culture of inclusion and respect through interviews, content creation, live events and partnerships that educate, enrich, and empower people to create a positive social environment for all, regardless of age, race, religion, sexual orientation, or physical or intellectual ability.
CLICK HERE FOR SPECIAL PARAMOUNT + DISCOUNT LINK
Paramount+ offers its subscribers a plethora of quality content.
From classic films to banger TV shows like 1883 and Star Trek: Discovery, there’s no shortage of entertainment to explore.
How about some cult favorites like Red Dawn, Grease and There Will Be Blood?
Start Streaming Today!
CLICK HERE FOR SPECIAL PARAMOUNT + DISCOUNT LINK
