RELEASE: New Survey of Data Center Executives Sheds Light on Energy Constraints & Emerging Solutions

Posted on April 29th, 2025 | Filed under Press Releases

AlphaStruxure and Schneider Electric partnered with Data Center Frontier to poll American and Canadian data center executives to release the first major survey of how the sector is adapting to power challenges.
Survey points to a growing “time to power” crisis as 44% of respondents indicate their average quoted utility wait times for more power are longer than 4 years.
The #1 ranked barrier to further data center expansion is power grid constraints. Within that, long wait times for more power were ranked as the top issue related to power grid constraints.

BOSTON, April 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — A new survey commissioned by AlphaStruxure, a leader in Energy as a Service (EaaS) infrastructure solutions, and Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, in partnership with Data Center Frontier, provides insights into the significant energy challenges faced by the data center sector. The survey of 149 American and Canadian data center executives was conducted between January – February 2025 and points to a growing “time to power” challenge that’s leading the industry to look to alternative solutions to grid power.

For decades, data centers secured dozens to hundreds of megawatts of utility capacity at a time. After generative AI took off in late 2022, the industry is now in a race to win the AI prize with energy access as the largest obstacle to development. This is the first major survey undertaken to measure how this sector is adapting to the unfolding energy crunch. The results tell a stark story of how much the industry’s outlook has changed in such a short time – and the ways it’s innovating to secure power. The complete survey results can be viewed here. Key findings from the survey include:

44% of respondents indicate their average quoted utility wait times are longer than 4 years
#1 barrier slowing down data center projects is grid constraints, with 92% seeing it as an obstacle. Long wait times were cited as the #1 reason for this obstacle.
#1 region for “Plan B” power availability if the first choice couldn’t provide timely power is the Midwest, while the #1 region in terms of time to power over the last several years is the Mountain West
6 in 10 report they would deploy on-site power generation systems if they ran into concerns about grid power availability — this was the top-ranked option, ahead of relocating the project (#2), and delaying the project (#3)
#1 and #2 ranked on-site power generation solutions were solar and battery storage

“I’ve been in the power industry over 30 years and I have never seen a moment like this. These first-of-their-kind findings show the breadth and depth of the energy demand crisis, confirming what we’ve heard anecdotally from our conversations with customers,” said Juan Macias, CEO of AlphaStruxure. “The ‘time to power’ challenge has caused wait times to stretch over seven years, or even a decade in some cases. The crisis is accelerating quickly and it won’t be long before compounding grid stress, increasing energy rates, and lost economic opportunities have noticeable impacts for everyday consumers. This survey also shows that organizations are increasingly thinking outside the grid by embracing infrastructure that’s ready to be deployed on-site.”

“As AI revolutionizes industries and consumers demand more data for digital services, energy infrastructure must rapidly expand,” said Schneider Electric’s Vandana Singh, SVP, Secure Power, North America. “This survey data aligns with the demand we’re seeing for electricity, automation, and digitization, with much of this driven by exponential data center development. To ensure our nation’s energy grid can keep pace with demand from data centers, utilities and developers must coordinate and collaborate to develop solutions that can both power our future and keep our nation’s energy supply secure for everyday Americans.”

AlphaStruxure is a joint-venture company of Schneider Electric, the global market leader in data center infrastructure. Together, they deliver the data center industry’s first end-to-end, grid to chip and chip to chiller, AI-ready energy solution. AlphaStruxure on-site power generation delivers time to power up to four times faster than the status quo.

About AlphaStruxure

AlphaStruxure is a leading Energy as a Service (EaaS) provider and microgrid integrator. Its purpose is to deliver on-site energy infrastructure at speed and scale. It does so by helping public- and private-sector organizations achieve ambitious, tailored energy transformations — without the capital expenditure or complexity. AlphaStruxure designs, finances, builds, owns, operates and maintains energy infrastructure as a way to guarantee pricing and performance. Its projects include two of the largest transit microgrids in the U.S. and a microgrid for John F. Kennedy International Airport’s New Terminal One. AlphaStruxure’s joint-venture model harnesses Carlyle’s expertise in financing large-scale energy infrastructure projects and Schneider Electric’s 185+ year legacy of energy innovation, with more than 350 successful microgrid projects across North America. AlphaStruxure is based in Boston, Mass., operates across North America, and leverages global capabilities. Learn more about the company at alphastruxure.com.