How AI is Affecting Energy Demand
Have you ever tripped a circuit breaker or had to reset an outlet strip?
You might have had your computer, printer, lamp—maybe even a coffee maker—all plugged into one power strip. Then you add a small heater, and suddenly, everything shuts down. The cause? Too much power (kWh) being drawn, which trips the breaker or thermal reset.
Now image that on a larger scale.
NVIDIA chips (or their equivalents), which power AI centers, consume around 200 watts each when operating. Companies like Amazon, IBM, Meta, Tesla, and Microsoft are planning to install millions of these chips. NVIDIA alone expects to ship 6 million chips by mid-2026.
The power demands for these chips are significant.
Consider 6 million NVDIA chips running 24/7 for one year is 36,792,000,000,000 kWh
In 2022 that energy represents.
• 6% of the entire US energy consumed
• 20% of the entire state of Illinois energy
• 43% of ComEd energy
Plugging in 43% demand into ComEd would blow a few circuit breakers! This doesn’t take into consideration all the computers trying to access the results of these new AI centers.
The consideration of creating such energy intensity in such a short time frame is having profound impact on energy utilities in the United States. Beyond generating power is the distribution of that power and the emissions of that energy production.
Solar and wind energy sources are the most economical and quickest to deploy choices, however they may not be considered due to political considerations.
Power demands cannot be met by issuing press releases. They take serious planning and billions of dollars in expenditure.
When you make your next Chat GPT query consider the power needs to deliver that answer.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer serving commercial customers in the states of Illinois, and Indiana. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 11 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.
Additional Information:
Electricity data browser – Net generation for all fuels (utility-scale)
Everything You Need to Know About Nvidia H200 GPUs
Mizuho Analysts Raise Nvidia AI GPU Shipment Forecast for 2025 – EconoTimes
Realgy Announces Continued Savings for Ameren Customers
Realgy Announces Continued Savings for Ameren Customers
May 13, 2025 – Realgy, LLC is pleased to announce that despite no change in Ameren’s utility pricing since February 2025, Realgy will now deliver over 4.4% in savings for commercial customers.
Realgy has published a revised ManagedPrice™ rate of 8.64¢/kWh, allowing commercial clients to benefit from meaningful cost reductions without any corresponding change from Ameren’s standard rate.
Ameren’s next expected price adjustment is scheduled for after May 2025, according to their published tariff. Until then, Realgy’s pricing strategy will continue to provide measurable benefits to its commercial customer base.
ManagedPrice™ is Realgy Energy Services’ exclusive program where all customers in a buying pool receive the same price. Realgy will make purchasing decisions on behalf of the pool participants to provide a low cost of natural gas or electricity while reducing the negative effects of market volatility.
For more information on Realgy’s ManagedPrice™ and how your business can take advantage of competitive energy pricing, visit www.realgy.com or contact us at 860-233-2270.
Realgy Announces Continued Savings for MEC Customers
Realgy Announces Continued Savings for MEC Customers
May 13, 2025 – Realgy, LLC is pleased to announce that Realgy will now deliver over 6% in savings for commercial customers compared to the earlier April rate.
This improvement in customer savings is driven by a reduction in Realgy’s costs at MISO. As a result, Realgy has published a revised ManagedPrice™ rate of 6.11¢/kWh, allowing commercial clients to benefit from meaningful cost reductions.
ManagedPrice™ is Realgy Energy Services’ exclusive program where all customers in a buying pool receive the same price. Realgy will make purchasing decisions on behalf of the pool participants to provide a low cost of natural gas or electricity while reducing the negative effects of market volatility.
For more information on Realgy’s ManagedPrice™ and how your business can take advantage of competitive energy pricing, visit www.realgy.com or contact us at 860-233-2270.
Illinois Solar Farms – Clearway Community Solar
Illinois Solar Farms – Clearway Community Solar
Whether federal laws overrule state laws or state laws overrule local laws, it’s always a case of who’s interest is heard.
Consider Illinois state siting laws over power plants in particular solar.
Solar farms are the concentration of ground-mounted solar panels that can cover large fields; 10-100 acres.
Illinois siting laws govern the permitting and siting of critical infrastructure such as wastewater, landfills, mining, and power plants. For such critical infrastructure, local zoning and siting are not primary, meaning that the needs of the state and state laws determine the final approval.
Recently, local county officials have reacted to the sitting of solar farms as some residents object to their use of farmland. County officials can pass resolutions requesting the state to rescind laws governing critical infrastructure however, most officials recognize the futility;
“We can send resolutions from here to the end of time and it’s not going to change the situation,
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer serving commercial customers in the states of Illinois, and Indiana. We offer service plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing directly to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed, and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 11 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.