Data Center Energy Needs Will Require an All-of-the-Above Approach
Unique problems in the U.S. energy space will require innovative solutions. With data centers, manufacturing and artificial intelligences’ energy consumption expected to rise over the next couple decades, energy companies have been tasked with spearheading the power generation shortcomings.
ExxonMobil recently announced plans to utilize its carbon capture and storage (CCS) system to generate electricity for data centers. While CCS technology is already being leveraged for industries such as steel, ammonia and hydrogen, using the systems for data center electricity is a first-of-its-kind move. As a recent report from Grid Strategies noted, data centers are “the single largest component of growth in utility load forecasts.” Low-carbon-intensity gas will help decarbonize data centers’ off-grid operations, allowing for quicker deployment and an accelerated timeline to meet AI growth.
The forecasted rise in energy demand will be a large hurdle for many industries, as well as our electricity grids, for the foreseeable future. The best approach to this challenge will be leveraging American innovation across the board. A singular, or narrow approach, to meeting increasing energy demand will likely be futile. An effort across sectors—renewables, traditional oil and gas and emerging technologies—coupled with more investment for infrastructure projects that provide connectivity will be vital. Exxon’s announcement of its CCS plans is a decent step in the right direction, but it will take more companies providing their expert solutions to fully meet the demand that data centers pose.
