As the United States returns to a period of rising electricity demand, this Electricity Demand Growth Resource Hub includes information on the solutions and suite of DOE tools available to support public and private stakeholders in capture the benefits of load growth while maintaining system reliability, affordability, and security. This hub will be expanded and further developed over time as new research and resources become available.
Understanding Electricity Demand Growth and Available Solutions
Rising electricity demand is mainly driven by data center expansion and the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) applications, domestic manufacturing growth, and electrification of different sectors. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL)’s 2024 Report on U.S. Data Center Energy Use finds that data centers consumed about 4.4% of total U.S. electricity in 2023 and are expected to consume approximately 6.7 to 12% of total U.S. electricity by 2028.
DOE regularly conducts research and analysis – including deep public and private stakeholder engagement – on solutions for rising electricity demand. Resources include:
- Supercharging the Electric Grid Edge for an Integrated Energy System provides technical assistance to support states, utilities, grid operators, and technology developers in right-sizing the grid to meet demand growth.
- 2024 Future of Resource Adequacy outlines a wide array of solutions to address increased electricity demand on the nation’s power grid while continuing to reduce emissions.
- Clean Energy Resources to Meet Data Center Electricity Demand provides additional context about data center load growth during the clean energy transition and lays out the broad portfolio of energy technologies and enabling solutions available today to meet rising demand.
- Pathways to Commercial Liftoff Topic Brief: How Clean Energy is the Solution to Rising Electricity Demand briefly summarizes the opportunity to unlock hundreds of gigawatts of system capacity by accelerating full commercialization for multiple clean energy technologies, advanced grid solutions, and virtual power plants (e.g., aggregated distributed energy resources) covered by DOE’s Pathways to Commercial Liftoff reports.
- How AI Can Help Clean Energy Meet Growing Electricity Demand summarizes the first set of milestones achieved by DOE’s voltAIc initiative, which is focused on building AI-powered tools for environmental permitting to help speed up energy deployments.
- Voices of Experience: Decarbonization Strategies and Grid Planning shares insights from a 2024 summer series for utilities focused on the unique regulatory environment, electricity market, and geographical dynamics to consider for carbon reduction strategies.
- Electrification Resource Library includes a catalog of 300+ DOE and market resources related to electrification, including news articles and resources on electricity demand growth, data centers, electricity solutions, and more.
Have questions?
If you have questions about DOE resources related to electricity demand growth, please reach out to [email protected] mailbox with the subject “Load Growth”.
DOE Programs
DOE has several existing funding opportunities, technical assistance programs, and other resources available to help with deploying solutions to address electricity demand growth.
- DOE Resources Available to Support Data Center Electricity Needs handout includes more detailed information about the 30+ relevant DOE programs, including:
- Grid Scale Clean Energy Deployment
- Grid Infrastructure Enhancement and Expansion
- Maximizing Energy Efficiency of Data Centers
- Demand Side Flexibility
- Technical Assistance Programs for State and Local Officials, Energy Professionals, Communities, and Large Energy Users
Note: These resources are also available to stakeholders experiencing other load growth priorities.
DOE Strategy on Electricity Demand Growth:
DOE continues to build upon existing programs and resources to enhance and expand its portfolio to best support stakeholders with effectively managing demand growth. Four key strategies for meeting data center energy demand include:
- Enabling data center flexibility through onsite power generation and storage solutions, including the Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office’s Onsite Energy Program and new Industrial Energy Storage Systems Prize, so data centers can be a grid asset.
- Leveraging energy community opportunities to redevelop infrastructure at retired coal facilities for data centers and associated power infrastructure.
- Engaging with stakeholders on innovative rate structures to support data center expansion while maintaining affordability.
- Commercializing key enabling technologies such as next-generation geothermal, advanced nuclear, long-duration storage, and efficient semiconductor technologies.
Recent publications relevant to DOE’s strategy include:
- The Recommendations on Grid Modernization study was published by the Secretary’s Energy Advisory Board Working Group on Powering AI and Data Center Infrastructure with 16 recommendations for how DOE can help support growing power demand, reliably and affordably. The report considers power dynamics for AI model training, operational flexibility for data center and utility operators, and promising generation and storage technologies to meet load growth.
Note: The materials above are a subset of the broad suite of tools and resources across the DOE relevant to electricity demand growth. It is not an exhaustive list. Please reach out to DOE at [email protected] if any questions about these or other resources available relevant to electricity demand growth.