UK data centers turn to gas generators as grid delays stretch to a decade

The UK’s data center boom is running into a wall, and that wall is the national electricity grid. Faced with connection wait times that can stretch well past a decade, developers are increasingly bypassing the grid entirely and generating their own power from natural gas.

Inquiries to gas networks from data center developers tripled to 113 in 2024-2025, with 46 applications currently under review. Seven gas connections have already been secured, representing a combined capacity of 15.4 TWh, enough to heat roughly 1.3 million homes.

A decade in the queue

Ofgem reported that the transmission demand queue grew from 41 GW in November 2024 to 125 GW by June 2025. Data centers account for around 50 GW of that demand, making them one of the single largest contributors to the backlog.

Getting a grid connection can now take anywhere from 10 to 15 years. Getting a gas connection, by contrast, typically takes between six and 24 months.

The poster case for this predicament is Nscale, a British AI data center firm valued at £11 billion and backed by Nvidia. The company is building a £2 billion facility in Loughton, Essex, and had planned to open in 2027. The problem: the planned 90 MW grid connection may not be operational until the early-to-mid 2030s.

Nscale is now in discussions with Bloom Energy about using solid oxide fuel cells to generate power from natural gas on-site. Bloom Energy’s fuel cells are already running at other UK data centers, including a facility in Manchester, and the company’s stock has risen sharply on the back of growing data center sector demand.

Gas as a permanent fix, not a stopgap

Across the UK, over 100 data center projects are actively considering gas-powered generation, and some developers are no longer treating it as a bridge solution while they wait for a grid connection. For certain projects, gas generation is becoming the plan.

Solid oxide fuel cells, like those Bloom Energy manufactures, are more efficient than traditional gas generators and produce lower direct emissions per unit of power. But they still run on natural gas, and natural gas still produces carbon dioxide.

What this means for energy markets and infrastructure

The surge in gas network inquiries signals a structural shift in how energy infrastructure investment is flowing. A tripling of annual inquiries in a single year reflects a fundamental mismatch between where electricity infrastructure capacity sits and where computational demand is growing.

Renewable energy developers face the same queue. Wind and solar projects are also waiting years for grid connections, which means the gas pivot by data centers is not just a climate concern in isolation. It is displacing capacity that might otherwise have gone to clean energy projects, while simultaneously adding fossil fuel load to a system trying to reduce it.