The artificial intelligence boom is driving a massive surge in power demand across the United States, and utilities are scrambling to lock in supply agreements with data center operators. This rush to secure capacity is setting the stage for significantly higher profits in the coming quarters as the grid struggles to keep pace with AI’s voracious appetite for electricity.
The numbers tell a striking story: data centers are projected to consume 8% of all power generated in the U.S. by 2030, nearly triple the 3% they accounted for in 2022, according to a Goldman Sachs report from May. That dramatic increase is fueling a wave of deals between utilities and tech giants.
Major Players Scaling Up
NextEra Energy has significantly expanded its partnership with Google Cloud to add multiple gigawatts of data center capacity and strengthen energy infrastructure nationwide. The company has also locked in 11 power purchase agreements and two energy storage deals with Meta Platforms, totaling over 2.5 gigawatts of clean energy contracts scheduled to come online between 2026 and 2028.
PPL’s Kentucky subsidiary, Louisville Gas and Electric Company, signed a power supply agreement in January 2025 with PowerHouse Data Centers and Poe Companies for a 400-megawatt data center campus in Louisville. The first 130 MW phase is slated for October 2026.
Nuclear Power Makes a Comeback
Constellation Energy (CEG.O) inked an exclusive deal with Microsoft to restart a unit at Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island nuclear plant, delivering 835 MW to the tech giant’s data centers. This would mark the first-ever restart of a shuttered nuclear plant in U.S. history. Constellation also struck an agreement with Meta to keep one of its Illinois reactors running for another 20 years.
The Full Landscape of Deals
Ameren (AEE.N) signed a 250 MW supply deal with a data center and secured additional contracts for over 85 MW of load across smaller facilities in Missouri and Illinois.
Alliant Energy (LNT.O) has executed multiple power supply deals with data centers but hasn’t disclosed specifics.
Exelon (EXC.O) is in the engineering phase for more than 5 gigawatts of data center capacity. Some customers have already put down deposits with ComEd, Exelon’s subsidiary, to order transmission equipment and breakers.
American Electric Power (AEP.O) signed letters of intent to power an additional 15 GW of data centers by decade’s end.
Xcel Energy will supply power to Meta’s Minnesota data center.
Entergy (ETR.N) received legislative approval to invest in transmission and generation for Amazon’s upcoming AWS facility in Mississippi. The company also signed a deal with Meta to power what will be the Facebook parent’s largest data center in the world, located in Louisiana.
Pinnacle West Capital (PNW.N) has locked in more than 4,000 MW of committed data center customers and reports a backlog of over 10,000 additional requests.
AES (AES.N) signed a 310 MW agreement with Google for its Ohio data centers, then expanded the partnership with a 15-year, 727 MW power purchase agreement in Texas. The company also inked two long-term deals with Meta to deliver 650 MW of solar capacity supporting data centers in Texas and Kansas. As of November, AES reported an 11.1 GW backlog of signed agreements, including 4 GW with hyperscaler customers, with most projects coming online within three years.
Talen Energy (TLN.O) announced a deal to supply electricity to its 960 MW data center campus for Amazon’s AWS in Pennsylvania.
NorthWestern Energy (NWE.O) signed a letter of intent to provide energy to a Montana data center developer, with expected load starting at 50 MW in 2027 and growing to 250 MW or more by 2029.
The wave of deals signals a fundamental shift in the U.S. power landscape, with AI-driven demand reshaping utility business models and accelerating investments in both traditional and renewable energy infrastructure.
