- New data centers are expected to increase energy demand 2.7 times by 2035
- These projects put enormous pressure on the energy grids
- This drives up prices and damages the environment.
A new wave of energy demand is affecting grids in the US. Current projections suggest that data centers will require 2.7 times current electricity needs by the end of 2035, a 36% increase from projections published just seven months ago.
New search for BloomberNEF shows that the massive increase in demand is likely to be due to artificial intelligence and could put regions under enormous pressure, leaving rural areas energy dependent while urban areas become congested.
The different forecasts are likely due to the increase in the number of promised data centers that are not yet operational, as well as the size and capacity of the proposed projects. Currently, only 10% of data centers consume more than 50 megawatts of electricity, but this share is expected to increase significantly over the next decade to an average output of more than 100 megawatts.
Environmental problems
With data centers becoming a growing emissions problem, this news will be troubling to many, especially those near planned new centers. The focus on rural areas in the US and UK could lead to the destruction of rural areas, where the bill for energy use is likely to fall on consumers.
The research also highlights areas where improved infrastructure can also be utilized, where fiber optic cables enable growth. It also identified former cryptocurrency mining sites that have been converted to AI-powered data centers.
“Today, developers are building large-scale campuses in suburban and exurban areas, typically within 30 miles of major cities.” Virginia has led this transition from the start, leveraging its strong infrastructure and fiber backbone. Today, Georgia and Ohio are doing the same, chasing the next wave of digital demand,” writes BloombergNEF.
The pressure these centers could put on already failing energy networks could be catastrophic, given weakened and aging infrastructure and already rising global electricity prices.