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Data centres used an estimated 415 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity worldwide in 2024, about 1.5% of global electricity consumption. The International Energy Agency (IEA) projects that figure could reach around 945 TWh by 2030 in its Base Case. The constraint is not simply whether the world can generate enough electricity: data centres are concentrated in particular places, and power plants, transmission lines and grid connections can take years to deliver.
How much electricity do AI data centres use?
The latest IEA data-centre estimate in the cited sources is 415 TWh for 2024, equivalent to around 1.5% of global electricity use. Consumption was concentrated: the United States accounted for 45%, China 25% and Europe 15%. Those shares describe where data-centre electricity was used, not the share of each region’s own electricity supply consumed by data centres. IEA, Energy and AI.
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The 2024 figure is an estimate of data centres as a category; it is not an AI-only measurement. Data centres also run conventional computing, storage and networking, and support services such as cooling and power infrastructure. AI workloads are increasing demand for high-performance accelerated servers and raising facility power density, but it would be inaccurate to treat all data-centre electricity as AI use.
In the IEA’s 2025 Base Case, data-centre consumption reaches around 945 TWh in 2030. That is a projection, not an observed outcome. The agency attributes around one-tenth of global electricity-demand growth to 2030 to data centres; they are a significant new load, but not the main source of worldwide demand growth. IEA, Energy and AI.
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A subsequent IEA update provides a nearer-term growth indicator: global data-centre electricity demand grew 17% in 2025, while demand from AI-focused data centres grew 50%. These are reported growth rates, not forecasts, and the AI-focused figure is a subset rather than a separate measure to add to total data-centre demand. IEA, Energy and AI.
Is crypto mining competing with AI for electricity?
Both data centres and cryptocurrency mining can require substantial computing hardware and electricity, so they can add to demand for power and infrastructure. But the available IEA figures do not establish crypto mining’s current standalone electricity use or its share of global consumption. That means they cannot quantify how much AI and crypto mining compete for electricity today.
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The IEA’s 2024 report estimated that data centres, AI and cryptocurrency together used 460 TWh in 2022. It forecast a combined 2026 range of 620–1,050 TWh, with a base case just over 800 TWh. These figures cover a combined category, not crypto mining by itself, and the 2022 estimate excludes transmission networks. They should not be compared directly with the later 415 TWh estimate, which covers data centres alone in 2024. IEA, Electricity 2024.
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Why can a relatively small global share create a local grid problem?
Electricity demand is served through local systems, not one worldwide pool. Data centres tend to cluster, so a region can face a large new load even when data centres account for only a modest share of global consumption. A global percentage cannot show whether a particular utility area has spare generation, transmission capacity or room to connect another large facility.
Timing compounds the geography problem. A data centre can be built faster than the power infrastructure needed to serve it. New transmission lines in advanced economies can take four to eight years to build, and grid-component lead times and connection queues can add delays. The IEA estimates that, without action on grid constraints, around 20% of planned data-centre projects could risk delay. This is an estimate of project risk, not a claim that one-fifth of existing data centres are already delayed. IEA, Energy and AI.
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For an individual project, the relevant question is therefore not only how much electricity data centres use globally, but whether sufficient power and grid capacity can be made available at the proposed site and on the project’s timetable.
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The IEA’s projections do not imply that every forecast load will be served automatically, or that one kind of generation will meet it everywhere. In the 2025 Base Case, renewables supply nearly half of the growth in data-centre electricity demand. The result depends on how quickly demand grows, efficiency improves, grid connections are built and energy infrastructure is deployed. Fossil generation remains part of the near-term picture in the scenario; the mix is not a guarantee for any individual country or grid. IEA, Energy and AI.
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Keeping pace requires several parts of the system to advance together:
- Generation: New electricity supply must be built and available where and when large data-centre loads need it.
- Transmission and grid equipment: Power must be moved to load centres, while equipment and connections are delivered on schedules compatible with facility growth.
- Location and flexibility: Siting facilities where capacity is available, and making workloads or backup assets more flexible, can help ease pressure on constrained areas.
- Efficiency: Better computing efficiency can limit electricity needed per unit of work, though rising use can still increase total demand.
The IEA’s 2026 update also points to technology and energy supply-chain pressures. It notes that AI applications could help monitor grid equipment and use existing capacity more effectively. That is a potential operational benefit, not evidence that AI will automatically offset the additional demand from data centres.
Quick Recap
What the projections do—and do not—say
- Observed or estimated use: The 415 TWh global data-centre figure is an estimate for 2024; the IEA reports 2025 growth rates of 17% for data centres overall and 50% for AI-focused data centres.
- Scenario, not certainty: The 945 TWh figure is the IEA’s 2030 Base Case projection. Different demand, efficiency and infrastructure outcomes can change the result.
- Global does not mean local: Global totals and regional shares cannot determine whether a particular grid can support a specific new facility.
- Categories matter: The 2022 and 2026 figures combine data centres, AI and cryptocurrency; they are not a current standalone estimate for crypto mining.
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