How much energy does AI use?
The article examines the rapidly increasing energy demands of AI data centers and their effects on Texas’ power grid. It highlights projects in the Dallas area and across Texas, including major facilities planned by Microsoft, Meta and Fermi, while experts warn that data center interconnection requests far exceed available grid capacity.
AI-driven data center expansion is placing unprecedented demands on Texas electricity infrastructure. Prime Data Centers operates a 20-megawatt campus near Dallas Love Field, while CleanArc Data Centers is developing a 245-megawatt facility nearby. Much larger projects include Microsoft’s 2-gigawatt facility in Reeves County, Meta’s 1-gigawatt site in El Paso and Fermi’s proposed Project Matador near Amarillo, which could eventually require up to 17 gigawatts.
Oncor reported that data centers account for most of the 271 gigawatts in its current interconnection queue, far exceeding the utility’s available peak capacity. Hao Zhu, an associate professor at the University of Texas at Austin, said data centers create both enormous demand and rapid power fluctuations that can destabilize the grid. The article concludes that Texas will need faster generation and transmission development, along with better coordination to manage data center loads as AI adoption accelerates.