US data-center power use could nearly triple by 2028, DOE-backed report says

source: finance.yahoo.com (contributed by Steve Page)  |  image: pixabay.com

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. data-center power demand could nearly triple in the next three years, and consume as much as 12% of the country’s electricity, as the industry undergoes an artificial-intelligence transformation, according to a Department of Energy-backed study that was first reported by Reuters.

The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory produced the report as the U.S. power industry and government attempt to understand how Big Tech’s data-center demand will affect electrical grids, power bills and the climate.

By 2028, data centers’ annual energy use could reach between 74 and 132 gigawatts, or 6.7% to 12% of total U.S. electricity consumption, according to the Berkeley Lab report.

The report included ranges that depended partly on the availability and demand for a type of AI chip known as GPUs. Currently, data centers make up a little more than 4% of the country’s power load.

“This really signals to us where the frontier is in terms of growing energy demand in the U.S.,” said Avi Shultz, director of the DOE’s Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office.

Swelling data-center electricity needs are accompanied by rising power consumption from onshoring of U.S. manufacturing and electrification of buildings and transportation. Overall U.S. power demand peaked in 2024 and is expected to hit another record next year.

growth in energy use, it helps us think about what opportunities there are for efficiencies,” Shehabi said.

The report also makes suggestions to further research and develop energy-efficiency strategies for the country’s booming AI data centers. New AI data centers are being built with power capacity as big as one gigawatt, enough to power all homes in Philadelphia.