US power demand to beat record highs in 2026 and 2027 as AI use surges, EIA says

NEW YORK, Nov 10 : US electricity consumption will rise to record highs in 2026 and 2027 due to power-hungry AI data centers and electrification, the US Energy Information Administration said in its Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) on Tuesday.

The EIA projected that power demand will rise from a record 4,216 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) in 2025 to 4,306 billion kWh in 2026 and 4,370 billion kWh in 2027. If correct, 2026 would be the third year in a row of record demand.

Demand is surging largely due to data centers dedicated to artificial intelligence. Homes and businesses have also been relying more on electricity and less on fossil fuels for heat and transportation.

The EIA forecast that power sales in 2026 will rise to 1,546 billion kWh for residential consumers, 1,557 billion kWh for commercial customers and 1,061 billion kWh for industrial customers.

The all-time highs stand at 1,519 billion kWh for residential consumers and 1,503 billion kWh for commercial customers in 2025 and 1,064 billion kWh for industrial customers in 2000.

As renewable output rises, the EIA said the share of power generation from coal will slide from 17 per cent in 2025 to 15 per cent in 2026 and 2027, while the share of natural gas in 2026 will hold steady from 2025 at 40 per cent, then ease to 39 per cent in 2027.

The percentage of renewable generation will rise from around 24 per cent in 2025 to 25 per cent in 2026 and 28 per cent in 2027, while nuclear power's share will hold at 18 per cent in 2026 and 2027, the same as in 2025, according to the outlook.

The EIA projected that gas sales in 2026 would slide to 12.2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) for residential consumers and 9.4 bcfd for commercial customers, but rise to 23.8 bcfd for industrial customers and 37.4 bcfd for power generation.

Those figures compare with all-time highs of 14.3 bcfd in 1996 for residential consumers, 9.9 bcfd in 2025 for commercial customers, 23.8 bcfd in 1973 for industrial customers, and 36.8 bcfd in 2024 for power generation.