The AI Boom Is Driving a New Era of U.S. Power Demand

The rapid expansion of global data-center electricity demand is driving a new era of U.S. power consumption. According to the Energy Institute's 2026 Statistical Review of World Energy, worldwide data-center electricity consumption reached 787.8 terawatt-hours in 2025, a significant increase of nearly 20% from 658.2 TWh in 2024. This surge in demand has made data centers a major new source of electricity need, challenging utilities, grid operators, regulators, and power producers to plan accordingly.

The United States is the clear leader in data-center electricity use, accounting for nearly 40% of the global total, with China second at 26.1% and Europe third at 18.4%. The U.S. has seen an even more dramatic increase in consumption, rising from 249.0 TWh in 2024 to 312.6 TWh in 2025, a 63.5 TWh increase. This represents roughly 49% of the global rise in data-center electricity demand.

The shift from flat electricity demand to a rapid increase is largely driven by data centers. In Virginia, for example, commercial electricity sales increased by nearly 30 million megawatt-hours between 2019 and 2025, with a significant portion attributed to the concentration of data centers. In the PJM grid, summer peak demand in 2025 was 23% higher than in 2019, while the 2025-2026 winter peak was 45% higher.

While there is agreement that data-center electricity demand will continue to rise, forecasts for the future consumption vary. S&P Global Energy estimates a 12% to 16% annual increase between 2025 and 2030, potentially reaching 1,550 TWh by 2030. In the U.S., forecasts range from 6.7% to 12% of U.S. electricity consumption by 2028, depending on deployment pace and efficiency improvements.

The growth in data-center electricity demand will necessitate new generation capacity and transmission infrastructure, presenting both opportunities and challenges for the power sector.