NEW YORK CITY, New York: As artificial intelligence drives soaring demand for data processing, electric utilities across the United States are under pressure to deliver unprecedented amounts of power.

A Reuters review of 13 major utility earnings calls found that nearly half had received power requests from data center developers that exceed their current peak demand or generating capacity. These inquiries, largely from Big Tech firms, underscore the energy demands of AI expansion.

Now, utilities are faced with a high-stakes balancing act. If they build too little, they risk grid instability and potential blackouts. If they overbuild, consumers could bear the cost.

"What we are seeing is this huge proposed influx of these abstract projects that nobody knows anything about," said Jon Gordon, a director at Advanced Energy United, a clean energy trade group.

The scale and secrecy of the requests further complicate planning. James Richmond, CEO of e2Companies, explained, "The data center process is to have a competitive bid from three companies in many markets. That one-third, automatically, is going to win, and two-thirds is going to drop out."

Sempra's Texas utility Oncor Electric has received requests totaling 119 gigawatts—nearly four times its current peak load. Allentown-based PPL said it has more than 50 GW of data center requests, surpassing its existing 7.2 GW generation capacity.

Oncor includes projects in its spending plans only after securing formal agreements. "We believe these agreements help incentivize accurate information sharing and the certainty of project planning," said spokesperson Kerri Dunn.

Evergy, which operates in Kansas and Missouri, said its expected data center-driven demand has nearly doubled to 11 GW, exceeding its anticipated 2025 peak system demand.

In Pennsylvania, officials are considering a central "clearinghouse" for data center power requests to better assess and manage the surge. "It's something that we're looking at pretty intensely," said Jacob Finkel from the governor's office.

But costs are rising fast. Richmond noted that the cost to build a megawatt hit $12 million in 2024, with further increases likely.

"There is risk of overbuild," said Barclays analyst Nick Campanella, pointing to inflation, land constraints, and tariffs under President Trump.

Some Big Tech firms may already be scaling back. TD Cowen analysts said Microsoft had pulled out of projects totaling 2 GW in recent months.