The U.S. Department of Energy has pinpointed 16 federal locations, including notable nuclear research institutions such as Los Alamos, as potential venues for the construction of data centers by tech companies aimed at advancing the development of artificial intelligence technology.
This initiative takes advantage of these sites’ existing energy infrastructure and readiness for expedited permitting processes for new energy sources, including nuclear, as highlighted in a statement released by the department on Thursday.
This directive comes on the heels of an executive order issued by former President Joe Biden in January, which was designed to dismantle barriers to AI data center expansion across the U.S. Additionally, this order encouraged the utilization of renewable energy sources to power these electricity-intensive centers.
Although President Donald Trump moved to undo many of Biden’s AI policy frameworks after reassuming office, he decided to maintain Biden’s data center order, emphasizing his interest in opening federal lands for such projects. “I’d like to see federal lands opened up for data centers,” Trump stated in January, underscoring their anticipated importance.
The selected lands encompass several national labs, including Los Alamos and Sandia in New Mexico and Oak Ridge in Tennessee.
While the tech sector has traditionally relied on data centers for operating online services like email, social media, and financial transactions, the rise of AI technologies behind chatbots and generative AI tools necessitates even greater computational power.
A report issued by the Department of Energy towards the end of last year revealed that the electricity demand of data centers in the U.S. has tripled over the last decade and could double or triple again by 2028, potentially consuming up to 12% of the nation’s total electricity output.
Efforts to accelerate the approval and construction of new nuclear reactors to deliver carbon-free power have been ongoing under administrations from both political spectrums. Biden’s order emphasized a transition to clean energy sources like geothermal, solar, wind, and nuclear, while Thursday’s statement from the energy department under Trump’s administration primarily highlighted nuclear power. However, an extensive request for information from data center and energy developers also detailed multiple energy sources available at each site, ranging from solar arrays to gas turbines.