What If Data Centers Are Part of the Energy Solution?

Americans expect electricity to be reliable and available whenever we need it. We flip a switch and expect the lights to come on. We search the internet for a place to eat, summon a car from our phones, stream a movie, conduct a video conference, and store photographs in “the cloud.” Increasingly, we ask artificial intelligence to answer a question in seconds. None of those experiences feel like an energy transaction when every one of them is.

It is easy to object to data centers in the abstract. It is harder to separate them from the digital conveniences essential to modern life. Data centers accounted for about 4.4 percent of U.S. electricity consumption in 2023. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates their share could reach 6.7 percent to 12 percent by 2028. That is an enormous increase, and its implications deserve serious attention. But “data centers use a lot of electricity” is the beginning of the conversation, not the conclusion.

Not every data center is the same kind of energy customer

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Some data centers are being designed as energy participants rather than energy consumers. Developers are pairing large loads with new generation, energy battery storage, demand-management technology, and other tools to reduce pressure on the electric system.

Texas provides an interesting laboratory. Google and Intersect Power are developing the Meitner Energy Center, where a new data center is being co-located with new electricity generation and energy battery storage. The model is intended to bring new power online alongside the computing load, reducing reliance on existing grid capacity.

Google has also announced agreements representing one gigawatt of data-center demand-response capability, allowing some computing workloads to shift when the electric grid needs relief. That is different from simply plugging an enormous new load into an already constrained grid.

Infrastructure debates often overlook how quickly innovation can change our assumptions about what is possible. Major transmission and generation projects can take years to plan, permit, interconnect, and construct. Companies that depend on bringing computing capacity online have strong incentives to find alternatives. New generation, energy battery storage, microgrids, and demand management can sometimes address parts of the problem faster.

Energy storage changes the equation

The rapid growth of energy storage is changing what is possible for large electricity users. Energy battery storage does not generate electricity, but it can solve the need for electricity from the grid. Energy battery systems can absorb electricity when supply is plentiful and release it when demand is high. Paired with generation and sophisticated controls, energy storage can help large users manage peak demand and, depending on the system and market, provide services to the wider grid.

The Center for Climate and Energy Solutions expects battery demand to quadruple by 2030. The United States installed 57.6 gigawatt-hours of new energy storage capacity in 2025, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, which projects approximately 601 GWh by 2030. Texas ranks second only to California in cumulative energy storage capacity.

Our traditional electricity model is simple: A power plant generates it, the grid carries it, and a customer consumes it. Increasingly, generation, energy storage, the grid, and customers can interact. Large electricity users can control when they draw power, while adding generation and energy storage to ease demand during periods of stress.

From energy consumer to energy participant

Instead of asking whether data centers are inherently good or bad, communities and policymakers should ask:

• Will the facility bring new generation or energy storage?
• Can its demand become flexible when the grid is constrained?
• Who pays for new infrastructure? What does the community receive in return?

Pennsylvania’s Responsible Infrastructure Development standards require qualifying data center developers seeking state support to meet their incremental electricity needs and pay the associated infrastructure costs, rather than shifting those costs to other ratepayers. The standards also include community, workforce, and environmental requirements.

If a company is creating massive new demand for electricity, what responsibility should it have for the additional supply and infrastructure required to serve it?

Curiosity matters when technology is changing this quickly

Communities have legitimate reasons to scrutinize enormous infrastructure projects. Data center developers should explain their power needs, water use, community impact, and economics. The public should expect transparency. But scrutiny also must consider how rapidly energy technology is evolving. The history of energy is, in many ways, a history of finding innovative ways to generate, store, distribute, and use power.

The evolution of energy technology is far from over. Technologies that were too expensive, too inaccessible, or unavailable a decade ago are becoming commercially viable. That does not negate legitimate concerns.

We cannot embrace the conveniences of the digital economy while ignoring the infrastructure that powers them.

Before we decide what a data center means for our energy future, we should understand what it is designed to do. History has shown that challenges drive innovation, and innovation expands what is possible. We should not let today’s probabilities define tomorrow’s possibilities.