Northern Virginia holds the highest concentration of data center power capacity of any market in the world, with nearly 7 gigawatts of installed capacity recorded in 2024. Around 5 percent of all global capacity currently under construction sits in the same corridor.

Three other US markets rank among the largest by installed capacity: Chicago, Dallas, and Omaha, Nebraska. Together with Northern Virginia, the four locations summed to about 12.4 gigawatts of installed capacity in 2024 and just over 10 percent of the global capacity now under construction. Rob Faktorow, vice chairman at real estate services firm CBRE, has attributed Northern Virginia's position to tax incentives, superior connectivity, and infrastructure suited to the resource demands of large server farms.

Asia ranks second behind North America for data center power capacity. Beijing, Singapore, Shanghai, and the Pearl River Delta all appear in the top 10 markets for installed capacity in 2024, together accounting for 8.5 gigawatts, with an additional combined 1.44 percent of global capacity under construction. In Europe, London recorded 1.45 gigawatts of installed capacity and Dublin recorded 1.66 gigawatts, and both markets have further capacity planned.

Demand across the sector is set to expand sharply. Global data center electricity demand is projected to climb by 530 terawatt-hours between 2024 and 2030. That increase exceeds the additional demand expected for space and water heating at 454 terawatt-hours and for heavy industry at 403 terawatt-hours, and it trails the increases projected for space cooling at 651 terawatt-hours and electric transport at 838 terawatt-hours.

Source: Statista - https://www.statista.com/chart/31372/regions-cities-with-highest-data-center-power-capacity/