Overview
- Peer-reviewed modeling in Environmental Research Letters projects wholesale electricity prices could rise 6% to 29% by 2030 as data center demand grows, with Virginia facing increases up to 57%.
- The Data Center Coalition is mounting a public campaign saying bills have not gone up because of data centers and that some communities have seen lower rates.
- Gallup finds 71% of Americans oppose an AI data center near them, and a University of Houston survey reports 63% of locals would object within a mile, with most opponents citing heavy power use as the top worry.
- Policy pushback is widening as New Jersey groups urge a statewide moratorium, a Dallas-area county adopts a pause, South Carolina’s Rep. Nancy Mace calls for a one-year freeze, and Maine’s governor vetoes a proposed statewide halt.
- Despite resistance, Moody’s now estimates top hyperscalers will spend about $785 billion in 2026 and near $1 trillion in 2027, even as at least 48 projects worth $156 billion were stalled or canceled last year.