Exelon CEO Warns US Could Face Blackouts as Early as 2027 as AI Drives Unprecedented Demand on Power Grid
Calvin Butler, CEO of Exelon Corp., warns that the US could face rolling blackouts as early as 2027 due to unprecedented demand from AI data centers. The PJM Interconnection, serving 13 states, faces a 6.5-gigawatt supply shortfall, with data center electricity consumption projected to double by 2027. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) has issued its highest alert level, indicating severe risks of shortfalls across multiple regions.
Calvin Butler, CEO of Exelon Corp., issued a stark warning to the Financial Times, stating that the American power grid is on a collision course with blackouts as early as summer 2027. Butler emphasized that the grid's expansion is failing to keep pace with the immense electricity demands generated by artificial intelligence data centers, particularly within the PJM Interconnection's service territory.
The PJM market, which supplies power to approximately 65 million people across 13 states and Washington D.C., recorded a 6.5-gigawatt supply deficit in its December 2025 capacity auction. This shortfall is projected to leave PJM unable to guarantee sufficient capacity for peak demand by summer 2027. AI data centers are the primary driver of this surge, with consumption in PJM's territory expected to double from 31 gigawatts in 2025 to 66 gigawatts by 2027. Exelon itself anticipates a 26 percent compound annual growth rate in data center demand in its northern Illinois service area.
This escalating demand coincides with the planned retirement of about 83 gigawatts of coal-fired generation across the US, creating a critical gap in supply that new generation sources struggle to fill due to lengthy development and interconnection timelines. In response, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) issued a Level 3 "Essential Actions" alert in May 2026, its highest advisory level, highlighting significant electricity shortfall risks in 13 of 23 North American regions. The Trump administration also took federal action, declaring a national energy emergency, invoking the Defense Production Act, and committing $15 billion to preserve coal plants and accelerate grid component manufacturing.
Despite these efforts and the industry's exploration of solutions like advanced nuclear reactors, gas peaker plants, transmission upgrades, and even floating data centers, Butler and other utility executives remain uncertain whether these measures will prevent the looming capacity crisis before summer 2027. Exelon, as a transmission and distribution utility, is investing $41.7 billion in grid upgrades, but Butler's warning underscores a systemic problem beyond a single utility's scope.