Data Center Boom Could Supercharge Blackouts Nationwide By 2030, Pennsylvania Regulators Warn

America’s AI gold rush could soon drive the nation’s largest power grid to blackouts.

Pennsylvania regulators warn that power-hungry facilities are arriving faster than new generation. Pennsylvania could experience as many as 13 loss-of-load events per year by 2030 if more data centers connect than currently anticipated and no new plants come online, Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PAPUC) Chairman Stephen DeFrank warned.

DeFrank’s statements are based on a recent PAPUC analysis assessing electricity within the state.

“Pennsylvania is at an energy crossroads,” DeFrank said in a press release. “Data center development brings significant opportunities, but that growth cannot come at the expense of the families and businesses that already depend on reliable and affordable electric service.”

The PAPUC-commissioned analysis found that data centers are a major driver of the tightening power supply across PJM Interconnection, the nation’s largest regional transmission organization. Electricity demand is rising as older power plants shut down and new generation struggles to come online quickly enough, according to the report, which was prepared by Synapse Energy Economics and other consultants.

The analysis modeled several possible futures for the grid. Under its baseline scenario, which uses PJM’s 2026 electricity demand forecast, the grid could experience the equivalent of about 5.9 instances every 10 years in which electricity supply falls short of demand by 2030, according to the report. Researchers said the increase was mainly driven by the large amount of new electricity demand expected from data centers.

Those concerns were put to the test in summer 2026. PJM took emergency steps to avoid widespread blackouts during a July heat wave as electricity demand surged and available reserves fell sharply, according to Reuters. The grid ultimately avoided rolling blackouts.

Under a scenario with even faster electricity demand growth and fewer new power supplies, that figure jumps to more than 13 days per year in which the grid could lack enough electricity to meet demand, according to the analysis. By contrast, a scenario assuming no new data centers connect to PJM beginning in 2027 produced an estimated shortage once every 20 years.

On July 2, PJM’s electricity demand reached an all-time high of about 168,158 megawatts after accounting for customers who were paid to cut their electricity use, according to PJM grid operator.