Overview

• Antonio Guterres called on every major tech firm to power all data centers with 100% renewables by 2030 to curb rapidly expanding electricity use.
• Data centers currently consume as much electricity as 100,000 homes; the largest facilities under construction could draw 20 times that amount.
• Knight Frank projects global data center capacity to increase by 46% over the next two years, driving capital expenditures above $286 billion by 2027.
• Executives say that AI-driven demand could accelerate renewable energy development through investments in solar, natural gas and nuclear projects, despite near-term reliance on existing fossil-fuel plants.
• Strained power grids have led U.S. utilities to seek a record $29 billion in rate increases and to explore new nuclear restarts.