The Big Picture
As data centers become a larger part of Utah’s economy, their water use is drawing greater scrutiny. Creekstone Energy says its planned Delta Gigasite could do more than conserve water: It could generate water by capturing vapor created during on-site natural-gas combustion.
Creekstone founder and CEO Ray Conley calls the concept GIGAWATER. The company is working with the University of Utah to independently study the process and test whether its early models hold up at scale.
Creekstone founder and CEO, Ray Conley, says the Delta campus would take a different approach: a closed-loop, air-cooled system that does not consume water through evaporation.
Burning natural gas produces carbon dioxide and water vapor. Instead of releasing both through a conventional exhaust stack, Creekstone proposes routing the hot gases underground through specially engineered rock. As the gases cool, the water vapor would condense into liquid that could be collected and reused.
It is the same basic phenomenon that causes water to drip from a vehicle’s tailpipe on a cold day, but at an industrial scale. Creekstone says that if the site reaches its planned capacity of roughly two gigawatts of natural-gas generation, the process could produce about 4,000 acre-feet of water per year—several times the amount used annually by the nearby city of Delta, according to Conley.
The water’s final use would depend on its chemistry and the level of treatment required. Potential applications include agriculture, industrial processes and, if it can be treated to the necessary standard, potable water.
Why It Matters
Water is a defining constraint for development in Utah and across the arid West. Unlike facilities in wetter regions that may use evaporative cooling, Creekstone says the Delta campus would rely on a closed-loop, air-cooled system designed to avoid consuming water for cooling.
If the capture system works as modeled, it could offer a new approach for data centers and other large energy users in water-constrained regions. The technology could also be adapted for other sites with access to natural gas or similar fuels.
But important questions remain. Researchers are evaluating the volume and chemistry of the recovered water, including its acidity, along with the engineering required to make the process practical. The project also relies on natural-gas combustion, which produces carbon dioxide, so any water benefit will need to be considered alongside the site’s broader environmental impacts.
The Bottom Line
Creekstone’s proposal is promising, but it has not yet been proven at full scale. The established science shows that combustion creates water vapor; the open question is whether Creekstone can capture, treat and reuse enough of it economically to make the Delta Gigasite water-positive.
The University of Utah’s independent review is underway. Its findings will help determine whether Project Oasis becomes a workable model for data-center development in Utah and other water-scarce regions.
Yes, but: The concept has not yet been proven at full scale. Creekstone has filed for a patent and is working with the University of Utah Energy & Geoscience Institute to independently evaluate the models, engineering and water chemistry.
The process also produces carbon dioxide, meaning the potential water benefit must be weighed alongside the project’s emissions and broader environmental impact.
What they’re saying: Conley says the company welcomes rigorous scrutiny.
“We’re open to being proven wrong, I’d much rather find out sooner than later if that were the case,” he said.
“The science behind Project Oasis is promising,” said Dr. Milind Deo, principal investigator, University of Utah Energy & Geoscience Institute. “EGI is committed to rigorous, independent verification, moving from theory and math through computer modeling and, ultimately, to physical demonstration. If the results bear out, this could change the way the data center industry thinks about water.”
EGI brings unmatched credibility to this effort. The Institute maintains a research portfolio valued at more than $850 million. Its work spans geothermal development, carbon capture and storage, and subsurface science, in collaboration with global industrial, academic, and government partners.
Project Oasis is the latest demonstration of Creekstone’s belief that the data center industry and the communities that host it don’t have to choose between economic growth and environmental stewardship. From the beginning, Creekstone has pursued a different model built on transparency, local partnership, and a genuine commitment to protecting the resources that make Utah what it is.
“Utah has been working to make sure data centers are accountable for how they use our water — it’s why I sponsored legislation last session to bring greater transparency to that reporting,” said Rep. Jill Koford, Utah House of Representatives. “What Creekstone is doing with Project Oasis goes well beyond compliance. This is exactly what it looks like when Utah businesses, our universities, and state leaders work together to meet a challenge head-on. I hope it sets the standard for how the entire industry operates.”
“We built GIGAWATER because we don’t think Utah should have to choose between hosting this industry and protecting its water,” Conley said. “We hope it becomes the model for how data centers are built across every arid climate where water is precious.”
The bottom line: The chemistry behind combustion-created water is established. The real test is whether Creekstone can capture, treat and reuse that water economically at Gigasite scale—and whether Project Oasis can become a practical model for water-constrained regions around the world.