EPRINC briefing
US Power Demand Growth
35 publications
Briefing summary
US electricity production grew 2.4% annually from 1981 to 2002 before plateauing at 0.5% from 2003 to 2023; this briefing examines demand growth now driven by AI data centers and manufacturing, and the dispatchable generation and price pressures it creates.
How fast is US electricity demand growing and why?
EventInstitute for Energy Research and Energy Policy Research Foundation Co-Host Workshop “Dominating Power: Charting the Next Decade of America’s Electricity Growth”The Energy Policy Research Foundation and the Institute for Energy Research cohosted a full-day, in-person workshop, Dominating Power: Charting the…Jan 2026ChartU.S. Electricity Production and Prices The Long ViewSince 1981, U.S. electricity production has moved through two epochs: annual growth of 2.4% from 1981 to 2002, then a plateau of just 0.5% from 2003…Chart 2025-02ChartU.S. Data Centers: A Provisional Summary in Two TablesDrawing on newly collected facility-level data, EPRINC counts 2,602 operating U.S. data centers in 2024, with another 139 under construction and 268…Chart 2024-45ChartVirginia Electricity Demand Growth: The Case of Data CentersIn 2023, Virginia data centers are estimated to have consumed 32 terawatt hours of electricity—over 25% of the state's total power needs and nearly…Chart 2024-43ChartU.S. Upward Reassessment of Electricity Demand in South Atlantic StatesA comparison of the EIA's December 2023 and July 2024 Short-Term Energy Outlooks shows that projected monthly electricity demand growth for the nine…Chart 2024-35ChartFigure 1. Relative Sizes of Largest Data Center MarketsFigure 1 compares the largest U.S. data center markets, showing that while California, Washington State, Texas, and Illinois host significant…Chart 2024-07ChartFigure 1. Energy Consumption of Data Centers, Data Transmission Networks, and Crypto MiningThe combined global electricity consumption of data centers, data transmission networks, and crypto mining has reached an estimated 600-850 TWh,…Chart 2024-05
Can generation and grid capacity keep pace with AI and manufacturing loads?
ChartPower Generation During Winter Storm Fern – The View From New EnglandDuring Winter Storm Fern, diesel-fired generation supplied an average of 31.3% of New England's electricity—peaking at 43.5%—despite costing roughly…Chart 2026-05ChartPower Generation During Winter Storm FernDuring Winter Storm Fern (January 22–26, 2026), dispatchable sources supplied 85% of average load and 90% at the 298 GW peak across the ERCOT, MISO,…Chart 2026-04ChartHeat Dome Regions (Northeast, Midwest and Texas) Power Generation (GW)During the late-June 2025 heat dome, power generation across the ERCOT, MISO, ISNE, NYISO, and PJM regions peaked at 401,000 MW between 5pm and 7pm,…Chart 2025-26EventEnergy Policy Research Hosts Third Power Vision 2030 Workshop: “Fueling the AI Boom and Manufacturing Renaissance: US Power Sector Constraints & Solutions”On Thursday, January 16, 2025, Energy Policy Research hosted a workshop, Fueling the AI Boom and Manufacturing Renaissance: US Power Sector…Jan 2025EventSecond Electricity Series Workshop: Challenges in Meeting Surging U.S. Power DemandOn November 1, 2024, the Energy Policy Research hosted the second installment of the popular Electricity Series Workshops, entitled…Nov 2024ChartU.S. Mid-Summer Heat Wave Met by Record Natural Gas Power GenerationDuring the June 19–July 14, 2024 national heat wave, natural gas supplied between 38% and 52% of U.S. power requirements, and a sharp drop-off in…Chart 2024-30ChartEPA’s Power Plant Rule, Declining U.S. Electricity Generating Capacity, and Growing Power Demand Have Capacity Requirements Been Underestimated in the Face…EPA's newly finalized power plant rule would retire a substantial share of dispatchable coal and natural gas capacity even as demand pressures from…Chart 2024-17ChartMassachusetts: Electrification Challenges in Response to Recent Legislation and RulesA Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities order effectively mandating the decommissioning of the natural gas system and a shift to electric…Chart 2024-11ChartEV Electricity Requirements and EPA’s Challenging RulesTwo EPA rules proposed in 2023 work at cross-purposes: one would sharply raise electric vehicle production while the other would reduce dispatchable…Chart 2023-26ChartJune 2023 Texas Heat Wave and ERCOT GenerationDuring the major heat wave that began June 15, 2023, ERCOT intraday electricity demand peaked at roughly 70,000 to 80,000 megawatt hours, with the…Chart 2023-25ChartNew England Winter Electricity Generation Mix: Some ConsiderationsAt peak winter demand, ISO New England generates approximately 12 thousand megawatts per hour, drawing an average of 46% from natural gas and 29%…Chart 2022-40ChartCan the California Electricity Grid Immediately Switch to an All EV Fleet?California's current electricity grid capacity would be insufficient to immediately support a full transition to an all-electric vehicle fleet…Chart 15ChartCan the U.S. Electricity Grid Immediately Switch to an All EV Fleet?A complete transition of the U.S. vehicle fleet to electric power would require the grid to generate an additional 1.4 trillion kilowatt-hours, or…Chart 9
What does demand growth mean for residential electricity prices?
ChartEPRINC Interactive Chart: US Residential Electricity Price Y-O-Y Growth, Cents/kWhResidential electricity prices went up in most states between August 2024 and August 2025, but the size of the increase was very different across…Nov 2025ChartEPRINC Interactive Chart: Changes in Electricity Prices Over the Past 20 Years (Desktop-friendly)One of the perennial questions we ask at EPRINC is “What contributes most to electricity prices?” Bad policies, generation mix, or rising demand?…Oct 2025ChartU.S. Summer Residential Electricity Trends: Three ViewsU.S. summer residential electricity bills are rising even as household consumption edges lower, with the average monthly bill climbing from $148 in…Chart 2025-23ChartNew York, California, Florida, Texas: Comparing Annual Unit Residential Electricity Costs with Per Capita CostsAmong the four most populous U.S. states, California has the highest residential electricity unit cost at 28.9 cents per kWh in 2023, but Florida…Chart 2024-31ChartA Tale of Two States on Electricity PricesCalifornia and Texas illustrate divergent outcomes on electricity prices, with the two states following markedly different trajectories.Chart 2024-25ChartSelect Residential Electricity Prices U.S. and EuropeThis week's chart compares select residential electricity prices in the United States and Europe, drawing on Eurostat's bi-annual data on household…Chart 29
Which resources must scale to meet 2030/2050 demand?
ReportEPRINC Expands Power Vision Initiative to 2050, Adding Nuclear Energy as Central Research PillarThe Energy Policy Research Foundation is pleased to announce the release of Power Vision 2050: Creating a Sustainable Pathway to Secure the American…Mar 2026ChartGlobal Nuclear Power Generation: Three ViewsRanked three ways — by existing plus mothballed and retired capacity, by capacity under construction and in pre-construction, and by cancellations —…Chart 2025-43ChartU.S. Utility-Scale Battery Storage DevelopmentsU.S. utility-scale battery storage capacity has grown from 1,570 MW in 2020 to 20,710 MW in 2024, an annualized rate of 90.6%, with California and…Chart 2024-44ChartUnderstanding the Scale ChallengeThe IEA's electricity generation outlooks for 2050 illustrate the scale of expansion required across generation sources, underscoring the magnitude…Chart 2024-19ChartApril in Sacramento: More Solar Generation in California Requires More Natural Gas GenerationAs California's solar output grows, the state must call on natural gas generation to ramp up rapidly each afternoon as solar falls off. In April…Chart 2023-18AnnouncementEnergy Policy Research Foundation Launches Electric Power Vision 2030 ProjectThe Energy Policy Research Foundation has initiated its Electric Power Vision 2030 project, which is detailed further in this document. Alongside…Sep 2024
Further research
ChartLLM Solves 80 Year Old Math Problem: Potential Research Speedups from AIA general reasoning model resolved the 80-year-old Erdős unit-distance conjecture in approximately 32 hours of compute at a cost of roughly $1,000,…Chart 2026-21ChartCarbon Dioxide Contribution of New U.S. Gas-Fired Baseload Plants to GlobalAnalysis of projected emissions indicates that carbon dioxide from new U.S. gas-fired baseload plants would represent a limited share of global…Chart 2025-34EventMax Pyziur Participates as a Panelist in Manhattan Alternative Investment Network’s (MAIN) In-Person Event: “Investing Opportunities in a World Short of Power”EPRINC’s Research Director Max Pyziur participated as a panelist in Manhattan Alternative Investment Network’s (MAIN) in-person event…Feb 2025