Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has warned that private equity firms are positioning themselves to profit from the artificial intelligence (AI) boom by acquiring utility companies and passing the costs of grid upgrades needed to support data centers onto consumers through higher electricity bills.
“Private equity is trying to buy up the utility companies that will be responsible for making those (grid) upgrades. Why? Because they want to own the utilities so they can push the cost of upgrading the grid for those data centers onto you, the consumer,” Warren said in a post on X Thursday.
AI Data Centers Are Driving A Surge In Power Demand
Warren said a growing share of the country’s rising electricity consumption is being driven by data centers, which require massive amounts of power to train and operate advanced models.
According to the International Energy Agency, electricity consumption from data centers worldwide is expected to more than double from current levels by 2030. In the U.S., data centers are expected to drive nearly half of electricity demand growth this decade and consume more power than several major industrial sectors combined.
The senator argued that the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure will require costly upgrades to the U.S. power grid, creating new opportunities for investors seeking exposure to the sector.
Private Equity Sees Utilities As The Next AI Play
Warren pointed to utility acquisitions over the past couple of years by major asset managers, including Blackstone Inc’s (NYSE:BX) proposed purchase of TXNM Energy (NYSE:TXNM), which serves about 800,000 customers in New Mexico and Texas
She also highlighted BlackRock Inc.‘s (NYSE:BLK) acquisition of a major stake in Midwest utility company American Electric Power Co. Inc. (NASDAQ: AEP) and its effort to purchase The AES Corp (NYSE:AES), another power provider serving customers in Ohio and Indiana.
AES is one of the world’s largest corporate suppliers of clean energy, with more than 11 gigawatts of contracted capacity serving major technology companies including Alphabet Inc.‘s (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT).
“Everything we’re seeing indicates that private equity companies are lining up to cash in on the growth of AI by purchasing utility companies,” Warren said, arguing that investors are looking to profit from both data centers and the utilities that supply them with electricity.
Consumers Could Be Left Holding The Bag
Warren warned that utility customers could ultimately bear the costs of grid upgrades needed to support the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure.
She argued that the risk is particularly acute because many utility companies operate as regulated monopolies, leaving consumers with few alternatives if rates increase or service deteriorates.
“Their plan: suck up profits while everyone else pays higher utility bills,” Warren said, adding that customers should not be left holding the bag while private equity executives make a fortune.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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