Data center demand is soaring, and off-grid gas won't fix the problem

Data centers are on track to use 20% of the country's power by 2035, up from just under 6% today, according to a new industry forecast. That works out to as much as 194 gigawatts of demand — more than the power grid is expected to handle. Tech companies are trying to fill the gap with their own gas and diesel generators. Elon Musk's xAI recently bought a company that runs more than a gigawatt of portable gas turbines, building on its use of diesel generators near Memphis, which is the subject of a lawsuit alleging unpermitted pollution in nearby communities. Meta and Google are also turning to gas power for their data centers. But experts say turbine shortages and workforce limits mean even heavy use of off-grid gas won't close the gap, and forecasters still see a 19-gigawatt shortfall by 2035.

This mostly plays out at the level of power grids and utility planning, not individual houses. But rising data center demand is part of why electricity costs and grid strain are becoming bigger issues nationally. Separately, the Trump administration has been rolling back federal energy-efficiency programs and incentives for switching from gas appliances to electric ones, and the Department of Energy quietly removed its online guides for cutting home power bills, like tips for finding and sealing drafts, just before a major heat wave hit.

On a brighter note for home solar and clean energy generally, state lawmakers introduced far fewer bills this year aimed at blocking wind, solar, and battery projects than in 2025, and only one such restrictive bill has passed.