We find ourselves, without exaggeration, in a deadly race toward the future. Heat pumps—essentially reversible air-conditioners—began outselling fossil methane gas furnaces 4 yrs ago. Now they are rounding the corner on air-conditioning, too + may well pass on the curve. "In 2025, sales of the appliances were basically tied—and heat pumps even beat air conditioners in September, a first.
"Compared with the same period last year, heat pump sales are up by about 1%, while AC sales are down by nearly 8%, according to data from the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute, a trade group." They’ve long been popular in more moderate climates, like the U.S. South, but in recent years their cold-weather performance has improved, and they’ve caught on in more frigid regions, too. "Heating is one of the largest sources of carbon emissions in the country, and heat pumps, which are two to four times more efficient than fossil-fueled systems, offer a much cleaner way to keep a space warm."
The fact that they also cool homes is a climate benefit in its own right, as extreme heat makes air-conditioning a necessity rather than a luxury. "Many states, municipalities, and utilities have incentivized the adoption of the energy-efficient, zero-emissions technology." These subsidies may come in the form of direct rebates, or may manifest in wonkier [ways], like pro-electric building codes or preferential electricity rates for homes with heat pumps.
"For a few years, the federal government offered incentives for the appliances, too, but...Trump and congressional Republicans repealed those last year."
Personally, we have been living with a heat pump for 8 yrs, and our house takes wonderful care of us + the planet at the same time. You may prefer to wager on the horses, but 'heat + cold pumps' are a better bet by far.
Nope, according to the nonprofit research group American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). While organizations are upping their investments on these programs, ACEEE thinks it’s not enough.Â
A new ACEEE report highlights a more than 14% “equity gap” in utility efficiency spending—low-income households make up nearly 28% of the population, but “efficiency programs reach those families at roughly half that rate.”
New records: In 2025, sales of heat pumps and conventional air conditioners essentially reached a tie (both hovering around 4M). But that changed in September of last year, when pumps out-sold ACs for the first time—and the gap has continued to narrow. Over the first few months of 2026, heat pump sales increased around 1% (and AC sales fell by almost 8%) compared with the same period last year.
Why the sudden shift? State and local incentives, plus utility rebates, have upped heat pumps’ appeal.
I’m sure most readers will find the title-phrase curious. Although you may guess what this is, per my (current definition), there may not be any currently, or there may be as many as three of these. If there are three of these, you probably don’t want to go there. First of all, none of these are as accommodating as the most austere hotel on Terra Ferma. They are all more like prisons. Better in some ways (like if you want to do scientific research) and much worse in others (like if you want to eat real food, sleep in a normal bed or use a normal toilet). However, a number of firms and other organizations are developing commercial space, so if you are really, really wealthy, this may be an option for you.
In the field of energy, it is important to clearly distinguish between energy systems and energy conversion systems, as these two concepts are often confused. An energy system is the broader concept. It encompasses everything required to produce, store, transport, distribute, and use energy. For example, when a country aims to supply its homes, industries, and transportation sector with clean energy, it develops an energy system that includes renewable energy sources (solar, wind, hydropower, etc.), storage solutions to manage fluctuations in production, transmission and distribution networks, and technologies that reduce COâ‚‚ emissions, such as carbon capture and storage (CCS). National, transatlantic, eurasian and Euro-Mediterranean energy scenarios seek to identify the best combination of these elements to ensure a reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy supply.
Within this broader framework are energy conversion systems, whose role is simply to transform one form of energy into another. For example, a fuel cell converts the chemical energy of hydrogen into electricity. Therefore, a fuel cell is an energy conversion system, not a complete energy system.
It is therefore important to be particularly careful about this common misunderstanding. Technologies such as renewable energy, energy storage, energy flexibility, and CCS are generally studied at the energy system level because they concern the overall organization and management of energy. In contrast, fuel cells, engines, turbines, and photovoltaic panels are energy conversion systems, meaning they are specific components integrated into a larger energy system.
In summary, an energy system encompasses the entire energy chain, whereas an energy conversion system is only one specialized link within that chain, dedicated to transforming energy from one form to another. This distinction is essential for avoiding errors in analysis and classification in energy studies.
The numbers: In 2024, municipal utilities reported an average disconnection rate of 12.3%, while electric co-ops reported an average rate of 7.8%. That’s according to recently released EIA data analyzed by the Energy & Policy Institute. These organizations were led by: South Kentucky RECC (with 86 residential electric disconnections per 100 customers), Jackson County REMC (with 78 residential disconnections), and the City of Camilla in GA (with 77 residential disconnections).
On the IOU side: For that same year, US IOUs reported an average residential shutoff rate of 6.3%. The top-rankingIOUS: Public Service Company of Oklahoma (with 58 residential electric disconnections per 100 customers), Centerpoint Energy in TX(with 38 residential disconnections),and Oncor Electric Delivery in TX (with 36 residential disconnections).
The context: This is “the clearest look yet” at residential shutoff rates for customers late on bills, the Energy & Policy Institute wrote, and it highlights “the uneven patchwork of rules determined by state lawmakers and regulators.” For example, many states have protections that only apply to IOU customers—so people served by municipal and co-op utilities lack these legal defenses.
I believe, as I’m starting this post, this will be the first post in the general category of “product development.” Not only does you author have a deep history in this field (albeit in supervisory control systems for electric utilities, not in the subject of this post, Fragrance Development). I know that, although the secondary knowledge is quite different in these two markets, that basic steps for developing a new product and many struggles are very similar.
There is a lot of misinformation about data centers today, and as a result, they have become a flashpoint in local debates, often portrayed as energy hogs or industrial intruders. Cities, counties, and states are moving quickly to impose moratoriums on new data center development. The reality is more complicated. Modern hyperscale and AI‑driven facilities are reshaping electricity demand at a pace the grid wasn’t built for, while also raising real questions about land use, water, and community impacts. At the same time, many assumptions about how data centers use power, affect bills, and fit into communities are outdated, oversimplified, or simply incorrect.
Understanding the real impacts is essential as digital infrastructure becomes a defining feature of the modern economy. If the U.S. fails to engage with these issues thoughtfully, other countries will, and the center of innovation will shift to the places that welcome and plan for this growth.
Below are ten of the most common myths shaping public debate, and what the evidence actually shows.
MYTH 1: “Data centers will make everyone’s power bill go up.”
Assessment: Mostly False
FACT: In most U.S. jurisdictions, data centers are required to pay the costs they create, including interconnection, grid upgrades, and large‑load tariffs.
Regulators use cost‑causation principles to prevent residential customers from subsidizing industrial load. In many regions, data centers also expand the tax base, which can ease pressure on local budgets.
Still, the scale and timing of new loads can create planning challenges for utilities, especially when multiple projects cluster in the same area.
MYTH 2: “Data centers are giant energy hogs with no grid value.”
Assessment: Mostly False
FACT: Nationally, data centers used 176 TWh in 2023, or 4.4% of all U.S. electricity.0F[i]Â For comparison, air conditioning in U.S. homes uses about 12% of household electricity,1F[ii] making data centers a major, but not singular, driver of demand. Data centers are also one of the most flexible large loads on the grid. They can:
Participate in demand response, curtailing load during peaks
Shift computing tasks to off-peak hours
Provide fast, automated load variation that helps integrate wind and solar.
Provide backup power to the grid operator, reducing the need for peaker plants
Of course, this flexibility is not automatic. It depends on tariff design, interconnection agreements, and operator participation. When those pieces are in place, data centers can augment grid reliability rather than strain it.
MYTH 3: “Data centers only strain the grid when they’re using power.”
Assessment: Mostly True
FACT: Large data centers can create real operational challenges if they trip offline suddenly or change load faster than the grid can respond.
NERC recently issued a Level 3 alert after several large facilities dropped offline unexpectedly, causing rapid swings in demand that stressed local systems.3F[iv] AI‑driven workloads can also ramp up and down quickly, creating variability that grid operators can mitigate through joint forecasting of consumption.
As of June 2026, there are 4,378 data centers in the U.S.[iii]
These risks are manageable, but they require updated interconnection standards, ride‑through requirements, and coordinated controls so data centers behave more like predictable grid assets and less like unbounded loads. As the digital economy grows, integrating these fast, flexible loads is becoming a core part of modern grid operations.
MYTH 4: “Utilities can move at the speed data center developers need.”
Assessment: Mostly True
FACT: Data center developers operate on fast capital cycles — often 18–36 months and are mostly limited by their own supply chain constraints. However, utility infrastructure follows a much slower timeline shaped by engineering, permitting, procurement, and regulatory review.
Even when utilities want to move quickly, interconnection studies, environmental review, community engagement, equipment lead times, and construction sequencing create unavoidable delays.
Developers sometimes assume utilities can “flex” to match their pace, but utilities must follow statutory processes and reliability standards that don’t bend to market urgency.
Transmission and substation upgrades can take 5–10 years, even when fully supported by all parties.
The mismatch isn’t about unwillingness; it’s about the physics, permitting, and public interest obligations that govern utility work. The result is a structural tension: capital moves fast; infrastructure moves slow. Successful projects recognize this gap early and plan around it rather than assuming utilities can accelerate on demand.
MYTH 5: “Data centers fit easily into any community.”
Assessment: Mostly True
FACT: Data centers often trigger significant land use debates, especially when proposed near homes, farmland, or environmentally sensitive areas. They require large parcels, access to transmission, and proximity to substations, which can put them in competition with agriculture, open space, or planned development. Local residents frequently raise concerns about visual impact, loss of rural character, construction traffic, and long-term land conversion. Permitting can become contentious when zoning codes weren’t written with data centers in mind.
Communities that proactively plan for where data centers should go, and where they shouldn’t, tend to experience fewer disputes and more predictable outcomes.
MYTH 6: “Data centers consume/waste enormous amounts of water.”
Assessment: Partially False
FACT: Water use varies dramatically by region and cooling technology. Many modern data centers use air‑cooled or hybrid‑cooled systems that require far less water than older designs or facilities in hot, arid climates. And a growing number of data centers are shifting to using recycled water (treated wastewater) instead of potable water. For example, Google uses reclaimed or non-potable water at over 25% of its data center campuses (one notable example is its Douglas County, Georgia data center, which runs on recycled municipal wastewater).4F[v] Lastly, many of the newer data centers are running water in a closed loop, reusing the water again.
Still, in water‑stressed regions, even modest use can be contentious — and communities increasingly expect transparency about cooling choices and long‑term water planning.
MYTH 7: “Data centers don’t benefit the local community.”
Assessment: Mostly False
FACT: Data centers can provide stable tax revenue and high‑value construction and technical jobs, often with relatively low demand on schools, roads, or social services. Loudoun County is a leading example: data center revenue has helped fund more than $1 billion in road improvements and 36 new schools while allowing the county to maintain the lowest property‑tax rate in Northern Virginia, supported by nearly $900 million in annual data‑center taxes.5F[vi]
These benefits are not universal. Communities with unclear zoning, limited infrastructure, or rapid clustering may experience friction if growth outpaces planning, and tax revenue may not offset concerns about land use, water, or long‑term development priorities. The real question is whether data center benefits align with local goals and whether siting decisions are transparent and well‑planned.
FACT: With the right policies in place, data centers can help accelerate clean‑energy deployment, but this outcome is not guaranteed.
Tools such as renewable additionality requirements, green tariffs, and 24/7 carbon‑free energy commitments ensure that new data center demand is met by new wind, solar, and storage projects rather than by increased fossil-fuel generation.
Many operators already procure renewables at a scale that enables them to bring new projects online faster than utilities typically can.
Still, without strong policy frameworks, large new loads can increase fossil generation in the near term. And when data center development outpaces grid capacity, communities may face increased pollution — a dynamic now prompting legal action in Mississippi, where residents have sued xAI, claiming that its on‑site gas turbines constitute an unpermitted power plant.6F[vii]
MYTH 9: “Data centers create noise and air pollution that harm nearby communities.”
Assessment: False
FACT: Modern data centers are quiet, low‑emission facilities that operate within local environmental standards. Cooling systems are engineered to meet strict noise limits, and the loudest components, such as backup generators, run only during short testing periods or rare outages. Data centers do not emit air pollution during normal operations because their electricity comes from the grid rather than on‑site combustion. Backup generators must meet stringent EPA emissions standards, and many operators are transitioning to batteries and other clean backup technologies.
Still, generator testing schedules, visual impact, and cumulative effects can be legitimate community concerns that require thoughtful mitigation.
MYTH10: “Data centers are a mature, settled technology.”
Assessment: False
FACT: Rapid growth, siting constraints, and grid bottlenecks are pushing the industry toward new and sometimes unconventional models. Investors are exploring ideas like floating, wave‑powered AI data centers that shift the challenge from energy transmission to data transmission.[viii] Other approaches include conceptual orbital data centers, modular micro‑data centers, on‑site clean‑energy systems, advanced immersion cooling, and AI‑optimized load shaping.
These efforts reflect a simple reality: the traditional “build a large facility near a substation” model is becoming harder to execute as land, community support, and interconnection capacity tighten. Not all innovations will succeed, but they show an industry under pressure to adapt as compute demand accelerates.
Bottom Line: The modern world runs on energy, computing, data, and intelligence. The infrastructure behind it is growing faster than many parts of the grid can accommodate. Data centers pose real challenges, from energy demand to siting friction, but they also offer opportunities for investment, jobs, flexibility, and innovation. By separating myths from facts, communities, utilities, and developers can focus on practical steps that ensure new facilities strengthen the entire ecosystem rather than strain parts of it. When done properly, the growth will align with local priorities, long‑term planning, and deliver benefits to all.
New report from the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative finds home energy information absent from the buying process, presenting untapped engagement opportunities for utilities
ATLANTA – June 17, 2026 – The Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative (SECC), a nonprofit organization that studies consumer behaviors, interests and concerns in the energy transition, today released the findings from the “Home Buying in the Energy Transition” report, which analyzed the roles energy efficiency and clean energy technologies play in the home-buying process.
Conducted in partnership with the National Association of REALTORS® and 257, an intelligence platform that profiles the property and energy characteristics of every U.S. home, the “Home Buying in the Energy Transition” research involved three steps:
An analysis of 143 million real estate listings nationwide from 1995-2025 for mentions of energy efficiency and clean energy features and their impact on sale prices.
A survey of over 1,500 real estate professionals who have more than one year of experience and have been involved in at least two transactions over the past year.
A 10-minute online survey conducted in late March among 1,027 Americans who have purchased a home in the last five years.
Together, these research inputs show that while consumers highly value energy efficiency, they rarely receive the information they need when evaluating homes. This engagement gap provides an opportunity for electricity providers to empower real estate agents and build relationships with residential customers, while advancing energy efficiency and the adoption of distributed energy resources (DERs) that can help lower bills and improve grid reliability.
According to the report, an analysis of U.S. homes sold between 2024-2025 found that although most real estate listings didn’t advertise the energy-efficient assets present, those that did were rewarded with higher purchase prices:
Homes with solar panels sold for 2% more, or the equivalent of $10K on a median sales price of $557K, when the listing mentioned solar.
Homes with heat pumps and heat pump-inclusive listings sold for up to 1% more, or $3.9K on a median sales price of $399K.
A third of homes with solar present didn't mention it in the listing, and heat pumps – one of the fastest-growing home energy technologies in America – were referenced just 8% of the time.
In addition, the survey of real estate agents revealed that while 84% of agents say they are familiar with energy efficiency, many lack confidence discussing specific technologies, incentives or environmental benefits. Nearly 60% cite limited client interest as a barrier, a perception contradicted by both the sales price findings and the consumer survey, which found strong interest in information on energy-efficient systems, smart home features and clean energy technologies.
The report closes with several opportunities for electricity providers to engage in the home-buying journey, including real estate agent training, co-branded educational materials, bill estimation tools and partnerships with home inspectors and contractors. These interventions can help ensure that buyers understand the long-term energy implications of their purchase and can take advantage of available incentives and relevant programs.
“Buying a home is one of the most important financial decisions people make,” SECC’s President & CEO Nathan Shannon said. “It’s also a moment when consumers could be highly receptive to energy guidance, particularly as they increasingly face affordability challenges. Electricity providers that step into this space with the right programs and messaging can create real value for both their customers and for the grid.”
The “Home Buying in the Energy Transition” report is available for download here for members and the industry at large. We are also hosting a one-hour webinar on the research on Thursday, June 25 at 1 p.m. (ET) with speakers from E Source, 257 and the National Association of REALTORS®.
Unprecedented temperatures could equal unprecedented energy costs. Households are predicted to pay nearly $800 on average between June and September. That’s an over 10% increase from last year, according to a recent report from the National Energy Assistance Directors Association. This trend is driven by “nominal price inflation and real increases in electricity expenditures.”Â
Uneven impacts: The biggest price spikes could hit the Mountain region, where residents are poised to pay nearly 14% more. That’s followed by the South Atlantic, where households could see a nearly 13% increase.
