Google Backs First US Gas Plant With Carbon Capture, Storage

Google has signed a first-of-its-kind corporate agreement to support a natural gas power plant equipped with carbon capture and storage (CCS), marking a step forward in the company’s efforts to advance clean energy technologies.

The project, Broadwing Energy, located in Illinois, will capture and permanently store about 90% of its CO2 emissions. Google has agreed to purchase most of the power generated by the plant, helping bring the new baseload power source online and connect it to the regional grid that serves Google’s data centers.

The initiative is part of Google’s broader strategy to commercialize emerging clean energy technologies, including enhanced geothermal, advanced nuclear, and long-duration energy storage. Google has also emphasized the role of natural gas with CCS as a source of reliable, low-emission power, outlining strict safety and environmental criteria for potential projects.

CCS works by capturing carbon dioxide from power plants or industrial facilities and storing it deep underground. Leading global organizations, including the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), recognize CCS as a key tool for reducing emissions in power generation and carbon-intensive industries such as steel and cement production.

The Broadwing project is the first in a collaboration with Low Carbon Infrastructure (LCI), a portfolio company of I Squared Capital, to develop future CCS facilities in the United States and demonstrate commercial-scale deployment. The initiative is expected to create roughly 750 full-time construction jobs over the next four years and support dozens of permanent jobs once operational, targeted for early 2030. LCI has engaged community stakeholders in the development process and plans to continue consultations throughout the plant’s lifecycle.

Google said the collaboration with LCI will also focus on improving technical and operational performance, increasing CO2 capture rates, and refining system economics. The project will incorporate a new CCS-specific Energy Attribute Certificate (EAC) standard to ensure accurate emissions reporting and transparency.

The company highlighted the role of clean energy in its broader sustainability strategy, noting that in 2024, five of Google’s AI-powered products helped users collectively reduce an estimated 26Mt of CO2e, roughly equal to the annual energy use of over 3.5 million US homes.