Surge in energy demand hits Texas with EVs, AI, crypto, data [Video]

The demand for energy in the U.S. has grown rapidly throughout the last three years. The nation’s surge is concentrated among a few states, said Jeff Schmid, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. One of those being Texas.

There’s a lot going in the Lone Star State that contributes to Texas’ load growth. There’s the state’s expanding footprint of energy-intensive data centers, artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency mining, a growing population, extreme weather patterns and the increase of electric vehicles.

All of this comes as the state’s grid operator ERCOT works to maintain reliability among peak demand, or when consumer demand for electricity is at its highest. But peak demand has been growing significantly faster, said Joshua Rhodes, an energy research scientist at the University of Texas at Austin. It grew faster between 2021 and 2023 than it grew from 2006 and 2021.

The increase of …