US Faces Winter Blackout Risks from Data Centers’ Power Needs

Rising electricity demand from data centers is raising the risk of blackouts across a wide swath of the US during extreme conditions this winter, according to the regulatory body overseeing grid stability.

Power consumption has grown 20 gigawatts from the previous winter, the North American Electric Reliability Corp. said Tuesday in its winter assessment. A gigawatt is the typical size of a nuclear power reactor. Supply hasn’t kept up.

As as result, a repeat of severe winter storms in North America that unleash a polar vortex, of which there have been several in recent years, could trigger energy ...