US data centers could require 194GW of power by 2035, according to recent data published by BloombergNEF.

The latest figures are an 83 percent jump from the firm's December forecast of 106GW. If this came to fruition, data centers would account for around 20 percent of the US’ total electricity consumption, compared to 5.9 percent at present.

Bloomberg said that the jump reflects the growing pipeline of AI facilities slated to be built over the next decade. This includes Microsoft’s massive 2GW planned facility in Pecos, Texas, and Meta’s up to 5GW data center in Richland Parish, Louisiana.

“Every coal plant, every gas plant, every solar farm in the US — one unit of energy out of five generated by them is going to data centers,” said Lloyd Arnold, an analyst at BNEF and one of the authors of the report. “So that’s the same energy that’s going to be going into powering electric vehicles, powering cities, etcetera.”

Data centers within the PJM Interconnection market, which serves much of the eastern US, are expected to account for an above-average share of energy use in 2035. There are prevailing concerns over whether the grid can keep pace with development, with analysts predicting a 19GW shortfall in generation by 2035, even if a record 7.1GW of capacity is installed each year before then.

The potential shortfall was also reflected in a recent Bank of America Global Research (BofA) report. The BoA revealed that the US could require more than 230GW of new generating capacity over the next five years, but regulated utilities are on track to add only around 93GW of accredited supply.

As a result, on-site energy solutions are expected to become even more commonplace, especially for large-scale facilities seeking to start operations as soon as possible. With large gas turbines largely sold out through 2030, BofA expects data center developers to lean more heavily on on-site gas engines. According to the report, more than 7.5GW of data center projects with on-site generation are already under construction, with more than 60GW in pre-construction. Most of these facilities are expected to pair self-generation with grid connections, rather than go fully off-grid.