Georgia regulators have approved a major expansion of the state's power grid, clearing Georgia Power to add nearly 10,000 megawatts of new generating capacity driven largely by projected demand from data centers. The Georgia Public Service Commission backed the plan after agreeing the additional capacity is needed, a move that will raise the utility's power capacity by roughly 50%.
The scale of the buildout is substantial. Georgia Power says the 10,000 megawatts is enough to power about 4 million homes, with an estimated 80% of that capacity flowing to data centers. Company officials estimate that 80% of projected demand growth over the next decade is tied to expected data center expansion, and project electrical load growth of about 8,200 megawatts by 2030.
The plan carries significant costs. Construction is estimated at $16.3 billion, but commission staff project that customers could pay $50 billion to $60 billion over the coming decades once interest and the utility's guaranteed return are included. The approach relies heavily on new natural gas infrastructure, including five new gas plants to meet rising demand.
The utility has agreed to shield existing customers from related rate increases until 2031 if the anticipated data center growth does not materialize. The decision illustrates how data center electricity demand is now driving large-scale utility planning and infrastructure investment, placing power supply at the center of the data center expansion story in the Southeast.
Source: Georgia Recorder - https://georgiarecorder.com/2025/12/19/georgia-regulators-approve-massive-power-grid-expansion-to-serve-data-centers/