Electricity Use For Commercial Computing Could Surpass Space Cooling, Ventilation - CleanTechnica

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Annual Energy Outlook 2025 (AEO2025) Reference case, electricity consumption for commercial computing in the U.S. is projected to grow rapidly, increasing from about 8% of commercial sector electricity use in 2024 to 20% by 2050. This growth is expected to outpace improvements in computing energy efficiency and surpass electricity use for other major commercial end uses such as lighting, space cooling, and ventilation. The rise in computing demand is significant enough to reverse the previous trend of declining commercial electricity intensity (measured in kWh per square foot). The growth in commercial computing energy use is driven largely by data centers, which are far more energy intensive than general computing devices like desktops and laptops. By 2050, data centers could require additional energy for up to 7% of all U.S. commercial floorspace, spanning many building types including healthcare and large offices. This increase also leads to higher