Data Center Boom Straining Utilities as Power Demand Soars
• AI data centers have seen explosive growth, taxing utilities beyond soaring power demand
• Some utilities are proposing more gas capacity and delayed coal retirements to support data center electricity use
• Utilities can't add renewable energy fast enough to support new data centers in a timely way
• There are concerns economic growth could slow without huge investments in transmission lines and grid upgrades
• Data center electricity use is expected to triple in the U.S. by 2030, reaching 7.5% of total consumption