Overview

• Many interconnection requests reflect multi‑site inquiries that will not all be built, leaving utilities unsure how much new capacity to plan.
• Oncor reports 552 large commercial and industrial requests including roughly 186 GW tied to data centers, while AEP cites 24 GW of firm commitments and customer interest in about 190 GW more.
• Utilities are pouring record sums into transmission and connections yet warn that misreading true demand could saddle customers with the costs of excess capacity.
• Power providers are pressing developers for clearer forecasts and power purchase agreements to right‑size investments and pricing.
• Analysts see AI‑related facilities driving roughly two‑thirds of U.S. demand growth through 2030, with natural gas expected to supply much of the near‑term power as data‑center consumption could reach 6.7%–12% of U.S. electricity by 2028.