Data Center Boom Will Boost AEP’s Electricity Demand By 42%

(Bloomberg) -- A data center building boom across the US will boost the amount of electricity American Electric Power Co. plans to supply by 15 gigawatts — the output of 15 nuclear reactors — by 2030, company executives said Tuesday.

The additional power is equal to 42% of the AEP’s current peak load and comes as utilities worldwide struggle to supply new data centers, which require large amounts of electricity to run complex artificial intelligence operations. Electrified factories and battery-powered cars are also adding to the biggest growth in electricity demand utilities have seen in a generation.

Most of the new data centers AEP will supply will be located in Ohio and Texas, executives said Tuesday on an earnings call. The company has said in resource plans that it will add about 20 gigawatts of new power generation by 2033, including about 8 gigawatts of wind, 6 gigawatts of solar and 5 gigawatts of natural gas.