"US datacenters are experiencing a significant shift toward coal-powered energy due to elevated natural gas prices and rapidly growing electricity demand. According to a research note from financial services firm Jefferies, datacenter operators are racing to connect new capacity to the electrical grid, with accelerated load growth expected during the 2026-2028 period. This spike in demand is driving an unexpected resurgence in coal generation, which has increased nearly 20 percent year-to-date."
"In Omaha, one power company reversed plans to stop burning coal to produce electricity, citing the need to serve nearby datacenters. The company determined that decommissioning coal-burning generators at the North Omaha power plant would risk power shortages in the district given rising energy requirements from these facilities. This reversal, as The Register reported at the time, carries environmental implications."
US datacenters are rapidly increasing grid-connected load, with accelerated capacity additions expected in 2026–2028. Elevated natural gas prices and rising demand are making coal-fired generation more economically competitive, driving coal output up nearly 20% year-to-date and prompting an approximate 11% upward revision to coal generation estimates with elevated levels expected through 2027. Some utilities have reversed coal retirements to avoid local power shortages serving datacenter districts. Continued coal use worsens local air quality and increases greenhouse gas emissions, and datacenter-related emissions could reach 2.5 billion tonnes globally by 2030 as AI capacity grows.
Read at Theregister
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]