--- title: Batteries are now cheaper than natural gas turbines used... description: Four-hour battery storage is now cheaper than open-cycle natural gas turbines across all 43 markets surveyed by Wood Mackenzie, driven partly by AI data center... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/batteries-are-now-cheaper-than-natural-gas-turbines-used-at-many-data-centers-kwo8rzlej twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Batteries are now cheaper than natural gas turbines used at many data centers | daily.dev og:description: Four-hour battery storage is now cheaper than open-cycle natural gas turbines across all 43 markets surveyed by Wood Mackenzie, driven partly by AI data center... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/batteries-are-now-cheaper-than-natural-gas-turbines-used-at-many-data-centers-kwo8rzlej og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/Kwo8rZLej.png og:image:alt: Batteries are now cheaper than natural gas turbines used at many data centers og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Batteries are now cheaper than natural gas turbines used at many data centers **[TechCrunch](https://daily.dev/sources/tc)** · 2 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Four-hour battery storage is now cheaper than open-cycle natural gas turbines across all 43 markets surveyed by Wood Mackenzie, driven partly by AI data center demand pushing gas turbine prices and lead times up (two to four years for open-cycle, early 2030s waitlists for closed-cycle). Battery costs are projected to keep falling while gas electricity costs rise, with the Middle East and Africa expected to see four-hour batteries 33% cheaper than gas peaking by 2035. Solar remains the cheapest new power source globally, though U.S. solar faces tariff pressure, partially offset by safe-harbor tax credit provisions for projects started or completed before the end of 2027. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Is battery storage now cheaper than natural gas turbines for data center power? Yes, four-hour duration battery storage is now less expensive than open-cycle gas turbines in every one of 43 markets surveyed globally, according to Wood Mackenzie. Open-cycle turbine prices have been pushed up by AI data center developers buying any available units, while battery costs are expected to keep declining as gas turbine electricity costs rise over coming decades. _Explore more coverage on daily.dev as data centers reshape energy infrastructure costs and sourcing decisions._ ### How long are the waitlists for new natural gas turbines right now? Open-cycle gas turbines, the simpler and more commonly used type for peaking power, now take two to four years to procure. Closed-cycle turbines face even longer waitlists extending into the early 2030s, with both backlogs driving up prices for all new natural gas power plants as AI data center demand strains supply. _Follow daily.dev for updates on energy supply constraints affecting data center buildouts._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Solar to dominate energy by 2035, but AI data centers will keep fossil fuels in business](https://daily.dev/posts/solar-to-dominate-energy-by-2035-but-ai-data-centers-will-keep-fossil-fuels-in-business-7ufyrkl2h) · TechCrunch · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Analysis finds “anytime electricity” from solar available as battery costs plummet](https://daily.dev/posts/analysis-finds-anytime-electricity-from-solar-available-as-battery-costs-plummet-ugnx2z8me) · Hacker News · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [Battery trade war hits booming datacenter market](https://daily.dev/posts/battery-trade-war-hits-booming-datacenter-market-vfh4phpad) · The Register · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Batteries just broke another record in the US](https://daily.dev/posts/batteries-just-broke-another-record-in-the-us-bgbldyezl) · MIT Technology Review · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [The giant batteries coming to South Africa’s grid](https://daily.dev/posts/the-giant-batteries-coming-to-south-africa-s-grid-ahyqqfmuf) · TechCentral · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/batteries-are-now-cheaper-than-natural-gas-turbines-used-at-many-data-centers-kwo8rzlej) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Batteries are now cheaper than natural gas turbines used at many data centers","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/batteries-are-now-cheaper-than-natural-gas-turbines-used-at-many-data-centers-kwo8rzlej","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/batteries-are-now-cheaper-than-natural-gas-turbines-used-at-many-data-centers-kwo8rzlej"},"datePublished":"2026-10-09T19:02:56.244Z","dateModified":"2026-10-10T01:59:51.821Z","description":"Four-hour battery storage is now cheaper than open-cycle natural gas turbines across all 43 markets surveyed by Wood Mackenzie, driven partly by AI data center...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/2a187e31dbee3b974e26eabce48ccf47?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/2a187e31dbee3b974e26eabce48ccf47?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"TechCrunch","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"TechCrunch","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/tc","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/tc"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/batteries-are-now-cheaper-than-natural-gas-turbines-used-at-many-data-centers-kwo8rzlej","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"","timeRequired":"PT2M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"TechCrunch","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/tc"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Batteries are now cheaper than natural gas turbines used at many data centers"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/batteries-are-now-cheaper-than-natural-gas-turbines-used-at-many-data-centers-kwo8rzlej#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Is battery storage now cheaper than natural gas turbines for data center power?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Yes, four-hour duration battery storage is now less expensive than open-cycle gas turbines in every one of 43 markets surveyed globally, according to Wood Mackenzie. Open-cycle turbine prices have been pushed up by AI data center developers buying any available units, while battery costs are expected to keep declining as gas turbine electricity costs rise over coming decades. Explore more coverage on daily.dev as data centers reshape energy infrastructure costs and sourcing decisions."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"How long are the waitlists for new natural gas turbines right now?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Open-cycle gas turbines, the simpler and more commonly used type for peaking power, now take two to four years to procure. Closed-cycle turbines face even longer waitlists extending into the early 2030s, with both backlogs driving up prices for all new natural gas power plants as AI data center demand strains supply. Follow daily.dev for updates on energy supply constraints affecting data center buildouts."}}]} ```