A BloombergNEF projection says artificial intelligence and rapidly expanding computing campuses could push U.S. data center demand to 194 gigawatts within a decade, outgrowing the grid’s current ability to connect new facilities.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Data centers could consume approximately 20% of all electricity generated in the United States by 2035, transforming the nation’s power system as artificial intelligence companies pursue larger computing campuses and communities intensify opposition to their construction.
The projected share would represent a sharp increase from the 5.9% of U.S. electricity currently used by data centers, according to a BloombergNEF report released July 21.
The report estimates that power demand from American data centers will reach 194 gigawatts by 2035. One gigawatt is roughly equal to the generating capacity of a traditional nuclear reactor, illustrating the scale of the infrastructure required to supply the industry.
The United States already has more than 3,100 operating data centers and over 1,800 additional facilities in various stages of development, according to Data Center Map, an infrastructure intelligence and mapping platform.
Much of the projected growth is being driven by artificial intelligence, which requires extensive computing power for training models, processing requests and operating increasingly sophisticated systems.
The growth involves not only a rising number of facilities but also a significant increase in their individual size. New projects are moving toward gigawatt-scale development, placing demand comparable to entire cities on local and regional power networks.
“Every coal plant, every gas plant, every solar farm in the United States, one unit of energy out of five generated by them is going to data centers,” BloombergNEF analyst and report co-author Lloyd Arnold said.
“So that’s the same energy that’s going to be going into powering electric vehicles, powering cities.
“We’re already seeing the grid struggling to keep up, and that’s driving a change in how assets connect to the grid,” Arnold said.
The projected demand creates a direct competition for electricity among data centers, homes, businesses, factories, transportation systems and other expanding uses such as electric vehicles.
It also raises questions about whether the country can construct enough power plants, substations and transmission lines to meet new demand without reducing reliability or significantly increasing customer costs.
BloombergNEF found that the highest annual amount of new data center capacity that can currently be connected to the electric grid is approximately 7.1 gigawatts.
Even if utilities maintain that record pace every year, the country could still face a 19-gigawatt shortfall by 2035 under the report’s base-case projection.
That gap would be equivalent to the output of approximately 19 traditional nuclear reactors.
The potential shortage reflects the long timelines associated with expanding the electric grid. Large transmission lines can require years of planning, environmental review, regulatory approval, land acquisition and construction.
New generating plants face similar challenges, while transformers, turbines and other critical electrical equipment may have extended manufacturing and delivery periods.
Many proposed data centers are advancing more quickly than the infrastructure needed to supply them.
The mismatch has forced utilities and developers to reconsider how facilities connect to the grid, whether campuses should build their own power sources and how much existing customers should pay for upgrades required by large technology companies.
A January report from Bloom Energy also warned that conventional power arrangements may be unable to support the next generation of data centers.
The Data Center Power report said growing demand is being caused both by the overall expansion of the industry and by the increasingly large scale of individual campuses.
As facilities move “toward gigawatt-scale development, traditional electrical architectures are expected to become increasingly inadequate,” the report said.
“Operators that continue to plan projects around traditional grid assumptions risk falling behind on both schedule and scale,” it added.
Data center developers are increasingly considering alternatives that could reduce their dependence on conventional grid connections. Those options include on-site natural gas generation, fuel cells, renewable power, battery storage and agreements tied to nuclear energy.
Such systems may allow projects to begin operating sooner, but they can also raise concerns about air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption and the placement of major power facilities near residential communities.
The increasing pressure on the power system has begun influencing state and local decisions.
New York has moved to suspend certain data center construction as officials assess the effects of large computing facilities on electricity supplies and surrounding communities.
Opposition has also grown in states experiencing heavy development.
On July 18, critics organized 142 protests across 42 states against the continued expansion of data centers.
The demonstrations were coordinated by HumansFirst, an organization co-founded by Amy Kremer, who also helped establish Women for Trump and previously held a leadership role in the modern Tea Party movement.
Kremer has described the campaign as nonpartisan and criticized Republican officials for giving technology companies what she called a “free pass” on data center development.
“They just woke up one day and found out they’re going to have this monstrosity in their community, and they don’t want it,” Kremer said.
She predicted that the issue would play a major role in the November midterm elections and the 2028 presidential campaign.
Texas hosted 18 of the July 18 events, more than any other state. The state has become a major destination for proposed data centers because of its available land, business environment and large electric market.
Georgia held 11 rallies, while California hosted eight.
Pennsylvania, Florida and Indiana each had seven demonstrations.
The protests reflect a broader change in the politics surrounding data centers. Local disputes that once centered mainly on zoning applications or individual construction permits are developing into a coordinated national movement.
Data Center Watch reported that community resistance blocked or delayed an estimated $152 billion in potential investment during 2025.
Approximately $98 billion of that total was disrupted during the second quarter alone, exceeding the combined value of all reported interruptions since 2023.
The second-quarter disputes affected 20 projects, according to the research organization.
Opposition increased further during the third and fourth quarters, when hundreds of activist groups across 42 states organized against new facilities or expansions of existing campuses.
Residents have raised concerns about electricity prices, noise, water use, diesel backup generators, land consumption, transmission lines and the effect of industrial-scale buildings on rural and suburban communities.
Some opponents also question whether local governments provide tax incentives to companies while residents bear the infrastructure and environmental costs.
Supporters contend that data centers generate investment, construction employment and tax revenue while supporting the growth of artificial intelligence, cloud computing and other digital services.
The long-term employment effect remains disputed because data centers often require large construction crews but employ relatively few permanent workers once operational.
Public opinion remains divided.
A survey conducted by Ipsos and commissioned by Redfin found that 47% of residents opposed construction of an artificial intelligence data center in their neighborhood, compared with 38% who supported such a project.
Younger Americans were more likely than older respondents to support data center construction near where they live.
The results also showed a political divide that did not follow the conventional pattern surrounding many environmental and development disputes.
Forty-nine percent of Republicans supported data center construction, compared with 36% of Democrats.
The difference may reflect Republican support for economic development and technology investment, Democratic concerns about environmental consequences, or varying attitudes toward large companies and energy consumption.
Kremer’s criticism of Republican leaders, however, indicates that opposition is also developing among conservative voters who object to industrial projects, government incentives or the use of eminent domain for related infrastructure.
The projected increase to 20% of national electricity use would magnify those disputes.
Utilities may need to build additional transmission lines through farms and residential areas, while states could face pressure to approve new natural gas plants, nuclear reactors or other major generating facilities.
Consumers may also question whether residential and small-business customers are subsidizing infrastructure constructed primarily for technology companies.
Developers and utilities have increasingly attempted to structure agreements requiring large data center customers to fund new generation, substations and transmission upgrades.
Whether those arrangements fully protect existing customers depends on regulatory decisions, project performance and how utilities allocate long-term costs.
The 194-gigawatt estimate also presents a reliability challenge.
Electric grids must maintain enough generation to serve peak demand while preserving reserves for outages, extreme weather and unexpected changes in supply.
Data centers generally operate around the clock and require exceptionally reliable power, leaving utilities with limited ability to reduce their consumption during emergencies.
Some facilities may participate in demand-response programs or use backup systems, but computing companies often resist interruptions that could affect customers or costly artificial intelligence operations.
The expansion could therefore require substantially more firm generating capacity capable of producing electricity when needed, rather than relying entirely on resources whose output changes with weather conditions.
The country’s ability to meet the projection will depend on how quickly it can build generation and transmission, whether developers adopt on-site power and how regulators handle projects that exceed local grid capacity.
The report does not mean every proposed data center will be completed. Power limitations, community opposition, financing problems and changing demand for artificial intelligence services could delay or cancel projects.
The large development pipeline nevertheless indicates that electricity has become one of the most important constraints on the industry’s growth.
With more than 1,800 U.S. facilities already under development, the contest over available power is moving from a long-term forecast to an immediate challenge for utilities, state governments and local residents.
By 2035, the electricity used by data centers could equal one-fifth of national consumption, requiring a fundamental expansion of the power system and forcing policymakers to decide how the costs and physical effects of that expansion will be divided.
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