Is it even possible to create a GCP project through Terraform Cloud?

I’d like to create a GCP project with Terraform Cloud (TFC), but I’m stuck in a chicken-and-egg situation.

For TFC to create resources on GCP, I need to set the GOOGLE_CREDENTIALS env var to a GCP service account key. Unfortunately, that key can’t be created until the GCP project exists. Project requires key requires project.

Is there any way to break out of this loop?

I discovered it’s possible to create a google_project by running terraform on my local machine (not remotely using Terraform Cloud). I simply use my member role, which has Project Creator permissions.

So I think the answer to my question is: No, you can’t create a GCP project through Terraform Cloud, but you can run terraform locally to create it.