It’s official: Data centers are slowing America’s shift away from coal

The Energy Information Administration released a report showing U.S. power sector carbon emissions rose four percent last year. According to Grist, the surge is driven largely by a thirteen percent increase in coal power generation, fueled in part by the artificial intelligence data center boom. These facilities run around the clock and demand so much electricity that aging coal plants planned for retirement are staying online. Virginia, home to the world's largest AI cluster, nearly doubled its coal generation to serve data centers, with Pennsylvania and West Virginia ramping up as well. Here's the concern: the power grid accounts for a quarter of U.S. emissions, and decarbonizing it is essential to meeting climate targets. Solar and wind surged last year, but coal is hanging on. Until there's enough clean power available around the clock, climate progress will stall.

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