Alaska Approves 50-Year Lease for Gas-Powered Data Center
The state Department of Natural Resources has approved a negotiated lease with STAK Energy Corp. for 715.4 acres along the Dalton Highway.
Updated on Nov. 12, 2026 in Data Centers
Alaska's Department of Natural Resources approved a 50-year negotiated lease with STAK Energy Corp. for 715.4 acres about one mile west of the Dalton Highway. STAK plans to build the STAK Energy Campus, a natural gas-powered data center, on the site.
Why it matters
The project would use stranded North Slope natural gas and gravel, which DNR said helps develop state resources the Dalton Highway corridor was designed to support. For Alaska, it signals a possible new industrial use of remote state land tied to energy infrastructure.
The project is projected to draw 1 to 3 gigawatts of electricity from natural gas generation and consume an estimated 350 to 500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day at full operation. Final buildout timing and whether these figures will be revised as phases proceed remain unconfirmed.
The players
STAK Energy Corp.
The company behind the proposed STAK Energy Campus, a natural gas-powered data center planned for the leased land west of the Dalton Highway.
Alaska Department of Natural Resources
The state agency responsible for managing Alaska's public lands and resources, which negotiated and approved the 50-year lease.
The details
The approved parcel includes a principal gravel pad of about 640 to 650 acres and a 1.8-mile gravel road to the Dalton Highway near Milepost 390. STAK has committed to timing restrictions on construction during caribou calving windows, and gas will come through one or more dedicated pipelines from fields 25 to 90 miles away.
Timeline
November 21, 2025: STAK submitted its original lease application.
December 8, 2025 to January 8, 2026: DNR solicited competitive interest and received no expressions of interest.
March 12, 2026: STAK submitted a revised application raising the projected workforce.
November 10, 2026: DNR Commissioner John Crowther signed the final finding and decision approving the lease.
Industry Dynamics
The project extends the Dalton Highway corridor's original purpose of supporting North Slope resource development into a new use, placing a gas-fired data center on the same state-managed land. It reflects how remote energy-producing regions are being considered for computing infrastructure.
For Alaska residents, the project would bring a large construction and operations workforce to the Dalton Highway corridor and place a gas-powered facility near the North Slope. The reader impact on daily costs, utilities and services is not described in the source material.
The takeaway
Alaska's approval shows how state land management can be used to bring new industrial activity into remote corridors, with the trade-offs for wildlife, construction and local services still to be measured as the project advances.
Further reading
For related coverage, explore Data Centers in Alaska.
