Virginia Is America's Data Center Capital 🗄️

What We're Showing

The percentage of U.S. states' electricity that data centers consumed. Only 44 states that had significant data center loads were included.

Data is for 2023 and comes from the Electric Power Research Institute.

Virginia's Data Centers Drive Power Surge

Data centers have become major electricity consumers in the U.S., driven by cloud computing and AI systems that require substantial computational resources and cooling infrastructure.

Virginia, particularly Northern Virginia, has emerged as the global epicenter for data centers, with nearly 300 facilities concentrated in Loudoun, Fairfax, and Prince William counties.

According to Amazon, around 70% of global internet traffic is estimated to pass through this region, often referred to as "Data Center Alley."

The massive concentration of data centers in Virginia has led to a significant increase in electricity consumption, with Dominion Energy reporting that 24% of its electricity sales in 2023 were to data centers.

The Northern Virginia Electric Cooperative expects to increase its peak electric load by more than 12% per year over the next 15 years, "driven almost exclusively by data center demand."