2026-05-18 ノースカロライナ州立大学（NCState）
Photo credit: Fré Sonneveld.
＜関連情報＞
- https://news.ncsu.edu/2026/05/data-centers-power-bills/
- https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ae6c3d
米国におけるデータセンターおよび仮想通貨マイニング拡大に伴う電力システムコストと排出量 Power system costs and emissions from data center and cryptocurrency mining expansion in the United States
Jeremiah X. Johnson, Cameron Wade, Michael Blackhurst, Joseph F Decarolis, Anderson R De Queiroz, I Daniel Posen and Paulina Jaramillo
Environmental Research Letters Published: 12 May 2026
DOI:10.1088/1748-9326/ae6c3d
Abstract
Rapid growth in electricity demand from data centers and cryptocurrency mining could significantly alter the trajectory of the United States’ power sector. We use an energy system optimization model to evaluate how projected demand through 2030 may influence electricity generation, power infrastructure investment, emissions, and costs under a range of scenarios. We model power sector capacity expansion and dispatch decisions across 26 interconnected power regions, incorporating policy constraints and spatial variation in renewable resources and transmission infrastructure. We find that data center and cryptocurrency demand could increase 2030 power sector CO2 emissions by up to 28% relative to a future with no data center growth, driven by increased generation from natural gas and coal plants. Regional effects vary substantially: coal-fired generation rebounds to meet demand in Northern Virginia, while Texas accommodates growth primarily through natural gas generation. Electricity costs, as measured by demand-weighted locational marginal prices, rise by up to 57% in some regions, with a national average increase of 6% to 29% across the modeled scenarios. Outcomes are highly sensitive to natural gas prices. Lower natural gas prices are associated with lower emissions before considering data center demand (with natural gas displacing coal), but result in large incremental emissions attributed to data centers as coal power utilization increases to meet the increased load. In contrast, higher natural gas prices shift a greater share of new demand toward cost-competitive renewable resources, thereby moderating emissions impacts. Reinstating federal incentives for renewable electricity would dampen both the cost and emissions attributable to data center demand. Distributing new data center and cryptocurrency demand more broadly across the grid reduces regional price spikes, but has little effect on national average electricity costs. Overall, these findings highlight the need for proactive planning and targeted policy to ensure that growing data center electricity demand does not strain efforts to achieve near-term climate and affordability goals.
