Facing grid limits, the US data center frenzy cools off. (Bloomberg)
As interconnection bottlenecks grow, utilities and grid operators are making it trickier to link data centers to the grid. The industry response? New additions to US data center pipelines fell to around 25 GW in Q4—roughly half the Q3 amount. This year, projected capex from the heavy-hitter developers is set to slow for the first time since 2023.
The game plan: For now, developers are shifting focus to sending existing projects across the finish line rather than piling on new ones with murkier prospects. But it’s still a long wait—in late 2025, 241 GW of data center capacity sat in US development queues, up nearly 160% from early last year.Â