U.S. President Donald Trump on January 13 demanded that large technology companies pay their own power bills for data centers, making clear he will not let American households shoulder the costs.
I never want Americans to pay higher electricity bills because of data centers.
Trump blamed Democratic policies for rising household electricity rates and said he had secured commitments from tech giants. He singled out Microsoft, saying the company will implement major changes starting this week to ensure data center power consumption is not passed on to consumers.
AI Data Center Power Surge: 5.2% in 2025, Nearing 12% by 2030
According to the latest data, U.S. data centers consumed 224 terawatt-hours (TWh) in 2025, accounting for 5.2% of total U.S. electricity use — a 21% jump from the previous year. By 2030, consumption could soar to 600 TWh, or 11.7% of the nation's power. AI-specific data centers are growing at around 30% annually, far outpacing the 9% growth of traditional servers. Cooling systems account for 30% to 40% of facility energy use, while servers and IT equipment consume 40% to 60%.
Electricity Prices Up 40% in Five Years, Trump Pressures Tech
Federal Reserve data shows U.S. average electricity prices have risen about 40% per kilowatt-hour over the past five years. The rising costs are driving the Trump administration to pressure the tech industry on data center power bills. For big tech, this may mean pouring more money into building their own power plants or signing long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) to avoid competing with residential users for grid capacity.
Bitcoin Mining Not Linked to Higher Power Prices, Study Finds
The article cited research by ESG expert Daniel Batten, who compared utility electricity price increases across countries from 2021 to 2024 against Bitcoin mining concentrations in Texas. The analysis found no evidence that Bitcoin mining drives up consumer electricity costs. This contrasts sharply with AI data centers. The International Energy Agency predicts that combined energy consumption from AI and Bitcoin mining will surge to 1,050 TWh by 2026, but about 70% of crypto mining uses green energy, while AI data centers primarily rely on fossil fuels.