Investor-owned U.S. electric utilities plan to invest over $1.1 trillion between 2025 and 2029 to meet rising electricity demand, according to the annual financial review by the Edison Electric Institute. This follows $1.3 trillion in capital expenditures from 2015 to 2024, making the sector the top capital spender in the U.S. economy.
Demand growth is largely driven by the rapid expansion of data centers, with AI-related energy needs possibly tripling by 2030. Other contributing factors include transportation electrification, domestic manufacturing, and regional economic development.