Anthropic Spends $3.4 Billion on Gas Generators to Power Its AI Data Centres
Anthropic has agreed to pay about $3.4 billion for 1.7 gigawatts of gas-fired generators from OnePWR Solutions, the Financial Times reported.
Image: Wikimedia Commons / TechCrunch
Anthropic has agreed to spend about $3.4 billion on gas-fired generators to power its artificial intelligence data centres, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, in a deal struck in late September with Texas-based OnePWR Solutions. The agreement covers 1.7 gigawatts of heavy-duty Caterpillar generators, which the Financial Times called the largest single purchase of power-generation equipment by an AI lab. Read the report on the deal.
Anthropic first planned to buy electricity from OnePWR as a customer, then took over the equipment orders instead. OnePWR had ordered the Caterpillar generators about two years ago but needed financing to complete the purchase. The deal includes the engineering and construction work to install the units, but Anthropic did not buy OnePWR itself and none of its employees moved over. Where the generators will be installed, and when, has not been disclosed.
Key Takeaways
- Anthropic agreed to pay about $3.4 billion for 1.7 gigawatts of gas-fired Caterpillar generators from OnePWR Solutions, in a deal struck in late September and reported by the Financial Times on Sunday.
- The purchase comes as Anthropic's amended IPO filing lists $895.4 billion in compute and infrastructure commitments, with $69.8 billion due within 12 months.
- Voters rejected data-centre projects in 40 of 41 local ballot measures last week, showing the local opposition that can slow new sites even when the money is there.
The commitment fits the numbers in Anthropic's IPO paperwork. The company filed to go public on October 26, reporting revenue of more than $16 billion in the first half of 2026, 14 times the same period a year earlier, and a net loss of $80.7 billion, most of it a $72.4 billion one-time accounting charge tied to financing deals. An amended filing on November 2 put total compute and infrastructure commitments at $895.4 billion, with $69.8 billion due within 12 months. Piper Sandler separately lists a $3.4 billion sale of OnePWR's power-generation platform to an unnamed frontier AI lab, matching the reported deal on price and timing.
Neither Anthropic nor OnePWR has commented publicly on the report, and Reuters said it could not independently verify it. Anthropic's filing also shows the company held $131.7 billion in cash and short-term investments, while credit agency KBRA rated it BB+, one notch below investment grade, so it is funding expansion with cash, not cheap debt. Power, not chips, is now the binding constraint on AI growth: Anthropic's own IPO filing says access to electricity limits data-centre expansion in several markets.
The race to build AI is turning into a race to buy electricity. Anthropic's $3.4 billion generator deal, OpenAI's $11 billion raise at a $1.25 trillion valuation, and Google's $15 billion data-centre investment in Malaysia all point the same way: the biggest AI companies now treat power as a strategic asset, not a utility bill. For investors, the question is whether that spending pays off before the IPO window closes. Anthropic's listing, under the ticker ANT on Nasdaq, could raise more than the $86 billion SpaceX took in June, the current record, and a possible stock market debut could value Anthropic at $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion, with proceeds of up to $100 billion.
The deal in numbers
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Price | $3.4 billion |
| Capacity | 1.7 gigawatts |
| Supplier | OnePWR Solutions |
| Generators | Caterpillar |
| Compute and infrastructure commitments | $895.4 billion |
| Due within 12 months | $69.8 billion |
| Cash and short-term investments | $131.7 billion |
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Anthropic buying generators instead of buying electricity from the grid?
Grid connections for large data centres can take years, and Anthropic's own filing says electricity access limits expansion in several markets, so owning generators lets it move faster than waiting for a grid connection.
Has Anthropic confirmed the deal?
No. Neither company has commented publicly, and Reuters said it could not independently verify the Financial Times report, though Piper Sandler's listing of a matching $3.4 billion OnePWR platform sale backs up the price and timing.
Where will the generators be installed?
That has not been disclosed, and neither has the timetable for installation. Watch whether Anthropic names the sites in its IPO roadshow, and whether Nvidia's board probe adds to the sector's wobble.
The next hard test is the IPO itself: Anthropic has not set a price or a date, and whether other labs follow suit by buying their own power will show how far the generator rush goes.
