What powers it: utility load, power deals, generation, grid interconnection and electrical equipment.
5 facts published from 3 filers, latest Nov 3, 2026
Every AI data center is a large electrical load. The energy layer is where that demand meets generation, the grid and the equipment that connects them, and its build times are measured in years.
US data centers used about 176 TWh of electricity in 2023, roughly 4.4% of the US total1. Berkeley Lab's 2025 update projects 9.5% to 15.3% by 2030, with 11.8% in its reference case2.
| Year | Share of US electricity |
|---|---|
| 2023, measured | 4.4% |
| 2030, projected range | 9.5% to 15.3% |
| 2030, reference case | 11.8% |
Request. A developer asks the local utility for service. Large requests trigger a load study; AEP Ohio's data center tariff, for example, applies from 25 MW4.
Commitment. The utility agrees to serve the load and reports it as committed load in its disclosures and plans.
Tariff and contract. State regulators set the terms for large loads. AEP Ohio's approved tariff bills data centers for at least 85% of their recent peak demand, under contracts of up to four ramp-up years plus eight more4.
Generation and grid. New power plants wait in interconnection queues. About 2,290 GW of generation and storage was in US queues at the end of 2024, the typical project built in 2024 took 55 months from request to operation, and 13% of capacity requested from 2000 to 2019 had been built3.
Equipment. Turbines and transformers are ordered years ahead. Lead times for new heavy-duty gas turbines at GE Vernova are about three years6, and large power transformers can take as long as four5.
Energization. Substations and lines are completed and service starts, often in phases as the campus fills.
| Year built | Months from request to operation |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 22 |
| 2015 | 36 |
| 2024 | 55 |
From published facts in this layer, ranked within each kind of measure. They aren't added together, because two facts can describe the same capacity.
| Fact | Figure |
|---|---|
| Pinnacle West reports committed load increased to 5.8 GW, with more than 15 data center sites in its territory | 5.8 GW |
| Cipher Digital begins developing lateral gas pipelines to support up to 2.5 GW of on-site generation | 2.5 GW |
| Figure | Fact | Published |
|---|---|---|
| 5.8 GW | Pinnacle West reports committed load increased to 5.8 GW, with more than 15 data center sites in its territory | Nov 3, 2026 |
| 2.5 GW | Cipher Digital begins developing lateral gas pipelines to support up to 2.5 GW of on-site generation | Nov 3, 2026 |
| Figure | Fact | Published |
|---|---|---|
| 42,000 GWh | APS 2026 IRP projects retail energy demand rising about 42,000 GWh by 2041, driven by manufacturing and data centers | Nov 3, 2026 |
| Figure | Fact | Published |
|---|---|---|
| $440 mn | APS announces new gas generation including about 720 MW at Saguaro and about 1280MW at Desert Sun | Nov 3, 2026 |
| $350 mn | NorthStrive Acquisition Corp I agrees business combination with advanced nuclear developer Nuclea Energy at $350 million enterprise value | Nov 3, 2026 |
Companies named most often in this layer's facts.
Places named most often in this layer's facts.
Public records that show changes in this layer before they're announced.
| Record | What it shows | How early |
|---|---|---|
| Utility disclosures | Committed and requested data center load | Before campuses open, often by years |
| State utility commission dockets | Large-load tariffs, special contracts and rate cases | Before deals are announced |
| Integrated resource plans | Expected demand growth and the generation needed | Long-range outlooks |
| Interconnection queues | New generation asking to connect to the grid | A typical recent project took 55 months to build3 |
| Equipment makers' orders and backlogs | Demand for turbines and transformers | Lead times of three to four years56 |
| Federal planned-generator data | New power plants and their planned dates | During planning |
2.5 GW
It targets gas availability in 2027, with potential for power generation soon after. Cipher also received ERCOT Batch Zero classifications for Texas pipeline sites, including a base load conditional classification for Colchis (1 GW), with final classifications expected in December.
Cipher DigitalERCOT Source: Cipher Digital Inc. 8-K, filed Nov 2, 2026
The definitive agreement was announced November 2, 2026, with closing expected in the first half of 2027. The combined company is to be renamed Nuclea-X Inc. and list on Nasdaq; the release cites data center demand as one driver for Nuclea's technologies.
MoltexNorthStrive Acquisition Corp INuclea EnergyNuclea-X Inc. Source: NorthStrive Acquisition Corp I. 8-K, filed Nov 2, 2026
The Preferred Portfolio identifies ~15 GW of new resources and ~2.6 GW of transmission capacity needed. Manufacturing and data centers are expected to drive the majority of incremental load growth.
APS Source: Pinnacle West Capital Corp 8-K, filed Nov 3, 2026
$440 mn
Saguaro is slated for 2030 and Desert Sun for 2032. APS also announced up to $440M to convert the retired Cholla plant to 380MWs of natural gas generation by 2029, and is an anchor shipper on a new gas pipeline expected in service by late 2029.
APS Source: Pinnacle West Capital Corp 8-K, filed Nov 3, 2026
More than 84% of committed load is yet to be served; about 0.9 GW is currently served and about 4.9 GW is not yet served. The manufacturing segment includes semiconductor and advanced packaging, and the data center segment includes more than 15 sites.
APSPinnacle West Source: Pinnacle West Capital Corp 8-K, filed Nov 3, 2026
Reference figures checked Nov 3, 2026.