The AI-energy apocalypse might be a little overblown

Even if it turns out that artificial intelligence is not as much as people make, it can still clarify the troubles of energy networks throughout the United States.

Technology companies are already burning by increasing quantities of electricity to train and operate new AI models. They ask for a lot of electricity as they try to get rid of each other. This increasing demand has already begun to reshape the power system, as facilities stood to build new gas factories and pipelines.

But all these plans to reshape the American energy system can be based on the artificial intelligence bubble. Since investors are excessive to pump money to technology companies are afraid of a vehicle loss, but they are still at risk of developing artificial intelligence tools that finally flounder, facilities also face a wave of speculation about the needs of the energy centers.

The last report warns of uncertainty taking into account the costs that Americans can end up when it comes to the bills of higher facilities and more pollution. The transition to the most clean and more affordable energy sources has made slow progress in the United States. This is at risk unless technology and facilities companies require more transparency and choose more renewable energy sources such as solar energy and wind energy.

“While the artificial intelligence boom provides exciting opportunities, there are many risks to not approaching energy needs through a deliberate and informed response that takes long -term effects,” said Kelly Paul, the main author of the report that she published this month with the invitation group for shareholders.

The country’s gas stations fleet in the country will grow by about a third of nearly a third of the new gas projects proposed between January 2023 and January 2025, with the dysfunctional intelligence industry heated. The amount of the new gas capacity suggested by the facilities and independent developers jumped by 70 percent during this time frame, driven in a large part of the high demand for electricity in the data center.

Before the Tructured IQ, the demand for electricity was largely flat for more than a decade with energy efficiency gains. But the new data centers, which have been expanded for artificial intelligence, are more controversial than they were in the past. Dan Timeson, a major research analyst at the S&G Global, may use that a group of computers in the traditional data center may use 6-8 kilowatts of energy-almost equivalent to the power used by three homes in the United States, and is a major research analyst at S&P GLOBAL. However, artificial intelligence requires more powerful computer chips to run more complex tasks. The energy required to operate one of these high -density shelves is equal to about 80 to 100 homes of strength, or up to 100 kW, according to Tompson.

“What is seen mainly is the strength of a small town that is spread,” he said.

Why is this important? Power networks mainly act as an unstable budget. If the energy supply is not able to meet the growth growth, this may lead to high utility bills and possible interruption. On the other hand, the excessive building of new capacity risks creates means of ways that the facilities end and their customers are paid for whether they already need them in the long run or not. For this reason it is extremely important to try to get accurate expectations for the future.

While artificial intelligence uses a lot of energy, expectations for the future become mysterious. “The speculators overwhelm the market,” the report says, seeks to build and heart centers. In an attempt to move forward in long waiting times to connect to the power network, some of these speculators ask for energy even before they get capital or customers to ensure that they can bring a project to the finish line. There can also be some double or triple count (or more) when it comes to predicting the demand for artificial intelligence because developers approach more than one benefit to get many quotes.

In the southeast, a major center for data centers, auxiliary tools expect four times more demand compared to independent analysis of industry trends, according to a report earlier this year from the Institute of Energy economy and Financial Analysis (IEFA). At the national level, the facilities are preparing for the growth of demand by 50 percent more than the technology industry expects, a separate report on the states of December 2024.

The same facilities have realized these risks on the last profit calls. Jim Burke, CEO of Texas -based Vistra Energy Energy, said in a quarter -1 call that the proposed projects trying to connect to the network “may exaggerate anywhere from three to five times what may be achieved.”

Despite the uncertainty, they still build new stations and gas pipelines to meet this request. After all, building a new infrastructure is one of the most profitable ways to benefit the profits. Now, the Trump administration – which was its campaign through oil and gas contributions – stimulates dependence on fossil fuels. In Louisiana, for example, the local Entergy company suggested building three new gas factories to operate a new new giant dead data center. The data center is estimated to consume up to 1.5 million homes and lead to 100 million tons of carbon emissions over 15 years.

It is a blatant contradiction from the goal of the Biden administration of obtaining the energy network to operate it on a 100 % pollution -free energy by 2035. The only way to stop climate change in its paths is to get rid of the planet pollution from fossil fuels. It is clear that building a new gas infrastructure moves the nation in the opposite direction.

There are solutions to reduce all these risks to a minimum, as they are planted and sierra Club in their report. The auxiliary tools for developers can require revealing the number of other facilities they have provided by their data center’s proposal to the extent to which they put the finishing touches on the project. Upon editing contracts, long -term service agreements can also require non -recovered deposits, and raise fees to cancel the project.

It is clear that technology companies have a great role that also plays, by improving energy efficiency in their technologies and investing in renewable energy sources. For years, technology giants including Amazon, Meta and Google were the best buyers of renewable companies. The excitement of these types of long -term agreements to build solar energy and new wind farms can be more influential now, as they contradict the Trump administration’s decline in the financial incentives for renewable staples, if companies are ready to determine the priorities of their sustainability targets as much as artificial intelligence aspirations.