As data centers drive a power boom, North Carolina faces a costly question: Who pays?

North Carolina is facing questions over who will pay for the electricity infrastructure needed to power the surge of data centers and AI facilities being built in the state. Utility executives from several states discussed how they are responding to the rapid growth in electricity demand from these large technology companies, with Duke Energy noting it has about 6 gigawatts of data center demand in its development pipeline in the Carolinas. The state is still working to define the rules and processes for integrating this level of growth into the power grid.