A new report from a D.C. think tank estimates energy prices for Virginians will need to increase by 25 to 70 percent by the end of the decade to meet the growing demand for data centers.
The 23-page study from the Jack Kemp Foundation, The Impact of Data Centers on Energy Demand and Market Prices, predicts that energy prices in Northern Virginia will need to increase by 25 to 70 percent by the end of the decade to meet the growing demand. It states that data centers are expected to use almost half of Virginia’s electricity by 2030.
“How much it goes up really depends on how creative we are in pricing,” explained Ike Brannon, PhD, a senior fellow for the foundation who co-authored this study.
Brannon told 7News that data center demand has taken off in the last five years but the power supply hasn’t. “Something’s going to have to give sometime soon,” he said.
Artificial Intelligence (AI), which requires more power, is driving future demand for data centers, according to the study – which states a ChatGPT AI query requires about ten times the amount of power compared to a standard Google search.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Rebecca Turco over at WJLA ABC 7
