“Alaska is one of America’s greatest energy frontiers, and President Trump is committed to unlocking its extraordinary potential,” Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum said.
The state could soon transform into a major data center hub following a new federal resource assessment, Newsweek reported.
Abundant natural gas and a naturally cold climate are driving the shift, according to reports. Alaska currently houses at least six operational data centers, while several additional projects have been announced or proposed.
The state offers wide-open spaces and cold temperatures that naturally cool powerful servers.
A report published last month by the U.S. Geological Survey estimated that Alaska’s North Slope could hold 96 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered, technically recoverable natural gas.
Alicia Lindauer, the USGS Energy Resources Program coordinator, told Newsweek that this figure is roughly three times the amount of known gas reserves in the region. She added it equals about three years of supply for the United States at the 2025 rate of consumption.
The estimate raises the possibility of Alaska becoming a major hub for advanced computing and AI development.
STAK Energy is developing Project Aaka, a proposed 3-gigawatt natural-gas-powered data center on the North Slope. It is set to become the largest data center in Alaska.
The company recently secured a 15-year deal with ExxonMobil Alaska Production Inc. to supply natural gas to the facility. Newsweek reached out to ExxonMobil by email regarding the agreement.
Kay Zinngrabe, STAK’s chief development officer, told Newsweek that the site will draw on existing fields. “The USGS estimate change adds further optimism for future expansion should demand for power generation continue to increase,” Zinngrabe said.
The North Slope gas supply is also eyed for a $55 billion LNG pipeline designed to transport gas to Anchorage and international markets.
Zinngrabe brushed off concerns over competition between the data center and the pipeline. “Nearly everyone on the STAK Energy team was born in Alaska or has lived here for many years,” Zinngrabe told Newsweek, emphasizing that both projects can succeed and benefit the state’s economy.
Political opposition poses another hurdle for the industry. Bernadette Wilson said: “I will never allow Alaska to be littered with hyperscale data centers that take our resources and spoil our lands.”
