According to Zhitong Finance App, John Ketchum, CEO of American giant utility company NextEra Energy (NEE.US), said in an interview on Wednesday that technology companies are eager to establish large-scale data centers in the United States, so they have asked the company to find sites with enough power to supply the entire city.
"Someone came to us and said, 'Can you find us a site that can meet a 5 GW demand?" Ketchum said. "Think about it. That's the scale for powering the city of Miami." Ketchum refused to disclose the names of these companies.
Ketchum said that so much power - roughly equivalent to five nuclear reactors or enough to power nearly three million homes - will require new wind and solar power fields, battery storage and grid connections. He added that finding a site that can accommodate 5 GW will take some work, but there are places in the United States that can accommodate 1 GW.
Currently, U.S. electricity consumption is soaring in part due to new data centers needed for artificial intelligence, high-speed streaming, and remote work. Development in domestic manufacturing and electrification in industries such as automobiles are also driving the growth. While the surge in demand has boosted the development of clean energy generation, it has also stimulated plans for building new fossil fuel power plants, complicating climate goals.
The surge in demand has even prompted NextEra Energy to consider restarting the Duane Arnold nuclear power plant in Iowa, which closed in 2020 after its largest customer chose to exit a power purchase agreement. Since 2013, more than a dozen reactors in the United States have shut down due to competition from cheap gas and renewable energy, but with consumption on the rise, there are rumors that some of these reactors may be reopened.
Ketchum said he has received inquiries from potential data center customers who may be interested in using the 600 MW Duane Arnold reactor. "If it can be safely completed within budget, I will consider it," he said.
The CEO said he expects U.S. electricity demand to grow nearly 40% in the next 20 years, compared to only 9% growth in the past 20 years. He noted that renewable energy will account for most of the consumption growth since new gas power plants are much more expensive, take too long to connect to the grid, and must be supplied through difficult-to-build natural gas pipelines.
He said that adding battery storage in wind and solar power fields can make these carbon-free energy sources almost as reliable as fossil fuels in providing around-the-clock power.
"If I wanted to pay twice the price, I could choose a gas-fired power plant," Ketchum said.
It is reported that NextEra Energy is the world's largest non-government-supported wind and solar developer, second only to China's large state-owned enterprises. The company has about 300 GW of renewable energy and storage projects.