The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts record-high power consumption in 2026. Strong demand from semiconductor plants, battery manufacturing, and data centers will bring consumption to 4,191 billion kWh in 2025, up from 4,097 billion kWh in 2024. The 2.8% year-over-year increase tops the May forecast of 1.7% annual growth.

Solar will lead all sources in new generation, reaching 450 billion kWh thanks to the addition of 222 GW of new capacity. This makes solar the leading driver of generation growth with a 17% expansion in 2026.

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global electricity demand will increase by an average annual 3.3% in 2025 and by 3.7% in 2026. The forecasts are a downward revision from previous outlooks, but strong demand is still expected from industrials, air conditioning, and data centers.

IEA reports that electricity demand is set to rise more than twice as fast as total energy demand over the forecast period.

For more:

EIA Short-Term Energy Outlook October 2025

IEA Electricity Mid-Year Update 2025