Server room in data center

Ammonia as a renewable fuel solution for sustainable behind-the-meter data centers

As AI and cloud technologies reshape global industries, data centers must evolve to meet surging energy demands — without increasing their environmental footprint. Our new whitepaper, Ammonia as a renewable fuel solution for sustainable behind-the-meter data centers, explores how integrating green ammonia with renewable energy provides a scalable, reliable, low-emissions power solution for next-generation data centers. 
As AI and cloud technologies reshape global industries, data centers must evolve to meet surging energy demands — without increasing their environmental footprint. Our new whitepaper, Ammonia as a renewable fuel solution for sustainable behind-the-meter data centers, explores how integrating green ammonia with renewable energy provides a scalable, reliable, low-emissions power solution for next-generation data centers. 

What’s inside?

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This whitepaper presents a detailed and practical roadmap for decarbonizing data centers by integrating renewable energy with ammonia-based fuel systems. 

As AI and cloud workloads push digital infrastructure to its limits, operators are increasingly seeking energy solutions that can scale without compromising on reliability or sustainability. This paper explores how combining wind and solar generation with green ammonia production and storage can create a resilient, low-emission, behind-the-meter (BTM) power model that meets growing demands while sidestepping the challenges of grid dependence, fossil fuel reliance and permitting complexity. 

You'll learn:

  • How ammonia enables 24/7 power for data centers, acting as a flexible energy carrier that stores surplus renewable energy and reconverts it on demand. 
  • What a real-world mega-watt scale model looks like, including its layout, fuel production systems, renewable generation mix and energy balance across seasonal conditions. 
  • How the system achieves a projected levelized cost of electricity in par with natural gas low carbon power plants, with scalable potential and declining capital costs across electrolyzers, turbines and storage. 
  • The environmental upside from near-zero operational carbon emissions (~3 g CO₂/kWh) and reduced water usage through flue gas condensation. 
  • Practical design guidance for integrating ammonia-powered turbines, partial cracking systems and storage into your next data center project. 

Download the whitepaper

Did you know?

  • US data center energy demand is expected to increase by 160 percent by 2030, reaching 8 percent of total national electricity consumption. 

  • The system achieves a carbon intensity of just 3 g CO₂/kWh, which is over 100 times lower than a typical natural gas-powered data center. 

  • Ammonia combustion enables partial water recovery from flue gases — reclaiming up to one-third of moisture and reducing freshwater demand. 

  • Ammonia offers safe, scalable storage and transport advantages over hydrogen, with mature infrastructure and proven compatibility with turbine technologies.

Ready to power your next data center with future fuels?

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As energy demands rise and climate commitments tighten, the case for ammonia-powered data centers has never been stronger. This whitepaper offers a blueprint for moving beyond fossil-dependent models towards a cleaner, more resilient energy future.

 

Whether you’re planning a greenfield deployment or retrofitting an existing facility, our team can help you integrate ammonia-based strategies that align with your sustainability goals, improve operational efficiency and unlock long-term cost savings.

 

Get in touch with us to explore how GHD can support your transition to renewable-powered, ammonia-ready data center infrastructure.

Download the whitepaper
As data centers evolve into the backbone of an AI-driven world, their power strategies must evolve too. Green ammonia offers a scalable, dispatchable, and sustainable energy pathway that not only aligns with net-zero ambitions but also tackles the practical realities of power resilience, grid constraints, and water scarcity. At GHD, we’re proud to help bridge digital growth with clean energy innovation.” 
Dr. Hassan Modarresi, Senior Technical Director – Future Fuels, GHD

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