NERC Warns Data Center Growth Increases Winter Blackout Risks

The North American Electric Reliability Corporation warned that the rapid expansion of data centers, fueled by artificial intelligence, is increasing the risk of electric power emergencies across North America. The regulatory agency reported that electricity demand this winter is expected to be 20 gigawatts higher than last year, a 2.5% increase that is outpacing current supply.

Elevated risks are concentrated in the U.S. West, Southeast, and Mid-Atlantic regions, including New England, the Carolinas, the Tennessee Valley, the Pacific Northwest, and Canada’s Maritime Provinces. To manage potential shortfalls, grid operators may increase electricity imports from neighboring regions or request customer cutbacks, with rotating blackouts as a final resort.

In Texas, the grid remains particularly unstable following the closure of coal plants. While grid-scale batteries have improved resilience since 2021, they typically only provide power for a few hours, whereas data centers draw electricity consistently. A prolonged cold snap could exhaust these reserves and trigger outages. Additionally, Texas Policy Research reports that data centers are failing to comply with water usage surveys conducted by the Texas Water Development Board, hindering assessments of the industry's environmental impact.