Meta is backing 10 gas plants to power data centers – and just quit a global renewables pledge

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has dropped out of RE100, a global pledge where companies commit to using 100% renewable electricity. The reason is Meta's growing reliance on gas power to run its AI data centers. In Louisiana, Meta is now backing 10 new gas-fired power plants totaling roughly 7.5 gigawatts, part of an expanded deal with utility Entergy Louisiana. Meta is also tied to a gas project in Ohio. The company joined the renewable pledge in 2016 as Facebook and said it hit the 100% renewable target by 2021, but it did so mainly through renewable energy certificates and power purchase agreements (contracts to buy clean power elsewhere), not by running its facilities directly on renewables.

This isn't just a Meta story. Google and Microsoft have also signed deals tied to new gas plants for their own data centers, even though both remain listed as RE100 members. Meta says it still funds more than 30 gigawatts of wind, solar, battery, nuclear, and geothermal projects and continues to "match" its annual electricity use with clean power on paper, even as its data centers run around the clock on gas-generated electricity.

For homeowners, this doesn't change any rebate program or upgrade option directly. But it reflects a broader trend: as AI data centers strain electric grids, utilities are turning to new gas plants to keep up, which could affect regional power costs and emissions in areas near these buildouts, including Louisiana and Ohio.