The Ever-Changing, Fast-Growing Demand for Electricity
How the increasing need for power affects electric co-ops and their members
By: Scott Flood
When rural electric cooperatives first strung power lines from farm to farm and through remote forests less than a century ago, most members had but a handful of lightbulbs to power. With time, they added appliances like refrigerators, but we’re sure they couldn’t begin to imagine the number and variety of electrical devices in today’s homes and garages.
Across the U.S., people are using an increasing amount of electricity at work, at home and, with the growth of electric vehicles, even on the road.
The demand for electricity increased by 2.5% in 2024 and is expected to grow by 3.2% this year. That was after co-ops saw a 4.8% increase in 2022. Through 2029, the nation’s peak demand is projected to grow by 38 gigawatts (GW). That would be like adding another California-sized state to our nation’s power grid.
The rapid growth of artificial intelligence is driving the development of massive data centers, often placed in electric co-op service territories to take advantage of inexpensive land and fewer neighbors to complain. By 2022, these facilities accounted for 2.5% of the nation’s consumption of electricity — and by 2030, they’ll use 7.5% of all electric power.
Data centers and facilities like warehouses require a large, steady supply of electricity 24 hours a day. That means the electric coops supplying them can’t rely on intermittent sources of electricity, such as solar or wind energy, to handle the additional load. Instead, they need more baseload, or always available power, much of which is currently generated by burning fossil fuels. The more we depend on technology, the more we’ll need reliable baseload generation.
Yet that’s a problem, because at the same time Americans are using more electricity, power providers are being forced to shut down these reliable sources of power, such as coal and nuclear power plants. Many large coal plants have been converted to use cleaner-burning natural gas, but others have been deemed too costly to convert and are prematurely being shut down. More than 110 GW of always-available generation — enough to power about 35 million homes — is forecast to retire by 2033.
In other words, at the same time everyone is using more electricity than ever, the supply of the most reliable source is drying up. Add in the uncertainty created by public policy debates around energy and climate change, and you can begin to understand why some states are facing a high risk of rolling blackouts between now and 2028.
One more factor plays a key role in the ability of co-ops and the rest of the nation’s power industry to keep up with demand. That’s the supply chain. The limited number of U.S. suppliers simply can’t keep up with the nation’s need for power equipment. When a co-op orders new transformers, it may have to wait several months for delivery and pay a significantly higher price.
So, expect to hear more about the challenges created by record demand for electricity in the coming years.
About the author: For more than four decades, business writer SCOTT FLOOD has worked with electric cooperatives to build knowledge of energy-related issues among directors, staff and members. Scott writes on a variety of energy-related topics for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the national trade association representing more than 900 electric co-ops.
About Allegheny: ALLEGHENY ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE, INC., based in Harrisburg, Pa., is a generation and transmission supplier serving the 14 rural electric cooperatives in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The cooperative has a proud history of investing in sustainable energy solutions to benefit the communities it serves while providing reliable energy at an affordable price.