More Than Three Alaskas of Power, Planned for Prudhoe Bay
3,000 megawatts. Phase one of a gas plant planned near Prudhoe Bay for AI data centers nearly equals all 152 power plants in Alaska.
The deck
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The story
The full plan is 10,000 megawatts, more than three times that fleet. Behind it is North Slope Power, the North Slope Borough's venture with Twenty First Century Utilities.
The Alaska Current's reporting adds up to $6.2 million of public money so far. It quotes the $5 million resolution saying the Borough would "initially" keep majority ownership. The financial structure is not public. It should be, before a plant this size goes up.
What EIA measures is drawn sharp, all 152 plants mapped to scale. The reported money sits in fog. The terms are a closed pipe blind.
Before the next public dollar goes in, what is the strongest case for keeping the terms private?
What we verified
46 CLAIMS, EACH RE-FETCHED FROM ITS SOURCE BEFORE THIS DECK SHIPPED
Alaska's net summer generating capacity was 2,853 megawatts in 2024.
Electric utilities held 2,639 megawatts of Alaska's 2024 net summer capacity.
Independent power producers and combined heat and power plants held 215 megawatts of Alaska's 2024 net summer capacity.
Alaska's net electricity generation was 6,690,506 megawatthours in 2024.
Natural gas was Alaska's primary energy source for electricity in 2024.
Alaska's average retail electricity price was 22.17 cents per kilowatthour in 2024, ranked 6th among the states.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Alaska District posted request for information W911KB279A007, EIE490 Microreactor Synchronization, Eielson AFB, Alaska, on October 2nd.
The Eielson notice describes a 45 megawatt thermal, 5 megawatt electric nuclear microreactor initiative at Eielson AFB.
Responses to the Eielson microreactor RFI are due October 16th at 2 PM Alaska time.
Rep. Nick Begich introduced H.R. 8400 on April 21st with Rep. Crenshaw and Rep. Owens.
H.R. 8400 may be cited as the DATA Act of 2026.
Under H.R. 8400 a consumer-regulated electric utility system must be physically islanded from all regulated utilities, the bulk-power system and the Bulk Electric System.
H.R. 8400 would exempt consumer-regulated electric utilities from Federal Power Act regulation including rate regulation, reliability standards and interconnection requirements.
EIA's power plant records list 152 power plants in Alaska with 3,106.5 megawatts of installed nameplate capacity.
Those 152 Alaska plants have a combined maximum summer capacity of 2,852.2 megawatts.
Alaska's largest power plant by installed capacity is George M Sullivan Generation Plant 2, a natural gas plant of 346.9 megawatts.
North Slope Borough Power and Light runs seven village power plants, in Atqasuk, Kaktovik, Nuiqsut, Point Hope, Point Lay, Anaktuvuk Pass and Wainwright, with 21.4 megawatts of installed capacity combined.
Twenty First Century Utilities is the North Slope Borough's corporate partner in North Slope Power, which is developing a 3 gigawatt (3,000 megawatt) natural gas plant.
North Slope Power plans to scale the plant to 10 gigawatts (10,000 megawatts).
Twenty First Century Utilities specializes in building energy infrastructure for data centers.
The project would tap nearly 30 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves in Prudhoe Bay, according to the Alaska Current.
North Slope Power would deliver electricity to colocated AI data centers.
One planning document lists integrated regional microgrids and a second natural gas pipeline to Utqiagvik as other elements of the project.
Mayor Josiah Patkotak authorized a no-bid contract for TFC to conduct a feasibility study in November 2025.
In March the North Slope Borough committed another $5 million in public funds to TFC to move forward in developing North Slope Power.
The resolution authorizing the $5 million contract described North Slope Power as an investor-owned utility with Borough majority ownership.
The resolution said North Slope Power would be structured so that the Borough would initially maintain a majority ownership interest.
The financial structure of the deal between the North Slope Borough and TFC is not public.
TFC managing partner Peter Corsell, his wife Betsy Cragon and his business partner Larry Kellerman each donated $5,000 to Mayor Patkotak on December 31st, 2025.
TFC partner Ross Berger contributed $500 to Mayor Patkotak on December 21st, 2025.
Contributions from TFC people totalled $15,500, about 27 percent of the $57,610 Patkotak reported raising.
TFC's proposal listed climate change among 10 North Slope challenges and later wrote N/A next to it where it outlined how it was tackling each one.
North Slope Borough residents vote on Tuesday on whether to oust Mayor Josiah Patkotak, according to the Alaska Current.
Patkotak weathered two recall efforts in early 2025.
Corsell, Kellerman and Patkotak did not respond to the Alaska Current's requests for comment.
Dermot Cole reported that the North Slope Borough maps a plan for what he called the largest natural gas power plant in the world.
Cole reported the plant would sit near Prudhoe Bay and generate electricity for industry, data centers and potentially a power line to the Railbelt.
Cole reported a 3 gigawatt first phase that could be expanded to 10 gigawatts.
Cole put proven natural gas reserves on Alaska's North Slope at more than 35 trillion cubic feet.
Borough Mayor Patkotak and three officials from Twenty First Century Utilities presented the project at CERAWeek in March in Texas.
The Alaska Current reported in May that the borough will tap its Permanent Fund to help finance the deal, providing a direct equity stake.
Independent candidate Bill Hill joined other independents in Washington to call for Congress to return and tackle data centers.
Bill Hill said Alaska is in an energy crisis and that data centers would be bought on the backs of ratepayers.
Hill said he did not want data centers to receive tax breaks or to build vast complexes without local input and support.
The two borough commitments the Alaska Current reports, $1.2 million in November 2025 and $5 million in March, total $6.2 million.
North Slope Power's planned 10,000 megawatts would be about 3.2 times the 3,106.5 megawatts of installed capacity in all 152 Alaska power plants, and its 3,000 megawatt first phase about 97 percent of it.
Beats
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