Data centers are adopting onsite power as a primary energy source, according to the 2025 Data Center Power Report from Bloom Energy.
Data centers are likely to continue to struggle with the timely availability of electricity, according to the report, which carries major implications for the future of the AI industry.
The report's mid-year update shows that securing electricity for data centers is likely to take much longer than anticipated, and that power availability is now the leading factor in site selection. The report offers a timely lens into what matters most to the leaders shaping the future of the AI industry in America, including:
Data center developers are underestimating time to power
Utility providers report significantly longer timelines to deliver power in key US markets, up to 2 years longer than what hyperscalers and colocation providers expect.
Power access is a leading factor in data center site selection
84% of respondents ranked availability of power among their top three considerations.
Onsite power is increasingly critical
In 2030, 38% of facilities are expected to use some onsite generation for primary power, up from 13% a year ago. Notably, 27% of facilities expect to be fully powered by onsite generation by 2030, a 27x increase from just 1% last year.
AI is driving larger, more power-intensive data centers
The median data center size is expected to grow by nearly 115%, from approximately 175 MW today to about 375 MW over the next 10 years.
Reducing carbon emissions is a lower but lasting priority
95% of those surveyed affirmed that sustainability and carbon reduction targets are still in place, even if the path to achieving those goals may not be linear.
"Decisions around where data centers get built have shifted dramatically over the last six months, with access to power now playing the most significant role in location scouting," said Aman Joshi, Bloom Energy's Chief Commercial Officer. "The grid can't keep pace with AI demands, so the industry is taking control with onsite power generation. When you control your power, you control your timeline, and immediate access to energy is what separates viable projects from stalled ones."
According to the survey, operators are looking beyond legacy power generation to solutions that offer fast deployment timelines, low emissions, and the ability to handle intense and fluctuating AI workloads, all while meeting the industry's uncompromising reliability standards and cost requirements.
Methodology: The latest report is based on data collected from April 2024 to April 2025, which surveyed approximately 100 decision-makers across the entire data center power ecosystem, reflecting perspectives from hyperscalers, colocation developers, utilities, and GPU service providers.