人工智能加速电力需求增长，推动电网适应性调整与投资热潮

AI accelerates electricity demand, prompting a new wave of grid adaptation and investment •Nearly 80% of utilities expect more extreme and volatile demand patterns•Around one in five data center power requests may never materialize, distorting forecasts•At the same time, AI is expectedby 60% of utilitiesto play a growing role in improving grid efficiencyand unlocking operational gains, but only fewhave implemented advanced AI-driven approaches Paris,June25,2026–The rapid expansion of AI-driven data centers isnot only increasing electricity demand, butmaking it significantly harder to predict, challenging how power systems are planned and delivered.A largemajority of electricity executives expect more extreme and less predictable demand spikes, while more than threequarters say they struggle to forecast future needsaccurately, according to theCapgeminiResearch Institute’s A new era ofvolatile and uncertain electricity demand Beyond growth, the bigger challenge is uncertainty. Utilities are increasingly planning for demand that may nevermaterialize.The report highlights a growing disconnect between projected and actual demand: amajority (67%) ofelectricity executivesrefer to “phantom” data-center load requests,witharound two in ten(19%)ofthemnever This forecasting uncertainty creates a significant capital allocation dilemma. Utilities must decide not only how muchcapacity to invest in, but where and when toprioritizegridmodernizationinvestments to support future demand whileavoiding stranded assets. For hyperscalers, the challenge is equally acute, requiring major infrastructure decisions to be Furthermore,overthree-quarters (77%)of utilitiesare forecasting difficultiespredictingfuture demand accurately, asconsumption patterns from AI become less stable and more difficult to model. As a result, theyexpectdemand variability In addition,68% of electricity executivesalsoanticipate shortagesdue todata-center demand growing faster than they The challenge is compounded by the geographic concentration of data centers, which places significant strain on localgrids: more than half of electricity executives identify load concentration as a major obstacle to reliable service,while “AI is transforming electricity systems far beyond demand growth. It is exposing structural constraints in grid capacity,planning, and power availability, while making demand more dynamic and harder to predict,”said Claire Gauthier, GlobalHead of Energy & Utilities at Capgemini.“The challenge is no longer only how much power is needed, but whether it can bedelivered reliably, where and when it is required.Utilities have a defining role to play as system orchestrators, leveraging AI- AI’s dual role: demand accelerator and a force multiplier for grid performance According to thereport, electricity consumption from AI training and inferencing is expected to risesignificantlyfrom25% to 60% of totaldata center electricitydemand in the next three to five years, largely displacing other IT At the same time, electricity executives seeAI as a force multiplierfor grid planning and reliability:aroundsix in tenexpect advanced AI analytics to deliver over 10% improvements in failure reduction, operational productivity, and Despite its benefits AI adoption remains limited As per thereport,less than half(45%)say they arecurrentlyusing AI for grid optimization, and only 16%of electricityorganizationshave implemented more advanced AI-driven approaches to optimize power flows, enhance resilience, and According to the report, grid infrastructure construction timelines are also a critical constraint in accommodating rapiddemand growth from AI data centers. This underscores the urgent need to accelerate grid modernizationthrough AI On-site poweras a structural shifttoward hybrid and decentralized energy systems Facing grid constraints and delays, data centers are increasingly shifting from backup-only approaches toward primarybehind-the-meter1(BTM) and near-site solutions.Nearly three in tensaytheyalready deploy on-sitepower solutionsand39% plan to add on-site/BTM within the nextone to twoyears; more than seven in ten expect these solutions to The majority (86%) see the ability to operate independently from the grid as a competitive advantage. This evolution isreshaping the traditional relationship between utilities and large energy consumers, introducing both opportunities and A balanced, diversified energy mix at the core ofreliable andsustainable data-center growth A diversified energy mix is emerging as essential to ensure reliability and long-term resiliencewhile renewable energyalone cannot yet provide continuous power at scale for large data centers and AI workloads-according to78% of They alsoagree that long-term solutions such as nuclear(Small Modular Reactors)will take time to deploy.As a result,more than two-thirds (68%) of electricity and data-center executives globally see natural gas as a near‑term, transitional “For both energy