A large data centre needs a large, reliable connection to the electricity grid. Building the halls is the quick part. The connection may need new transmission lines, new substations and new power stations, and each of those has to be studied, approved, supplied and built. Around the world, these steps now take longer than building the data centre itself. That is why access to power, rather than money or land, often sets the pace for new AI capacity.
Queues to connect
In the United States, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory counted about 10,300 projects actively seeking grid interconnection at the end of 2024, representing 1,400 GW of generation plus about 890 GW of storage. It found that the median time from a connection request to commercial operation has doubled, from under two years for projects built in 2000 to 2007 to over four years for those built in 2018 to 2024, and that only 13% of the capacity that asked to connect between 2000 and 2019 had reached commercial operation.
Years to build the wires
The International Energy Agency reports that new grid infrastructure often takes five to 15 years to plan, permit and complete. Equipment is a bottleneck too: it now takes two to three years to procure cables and up to four years to secure large power transformers, and waits for direct current cables extend beyond five years. In one example from Korea, a 345 kV line took 22 years to build, mainly because of local opposition.
| Step | Typical time cited | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Connection request to operation, US projects built 2018 to 2024 | Over 4 years (median) | Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory |
| Plan, permit and complete new grid infrastructure | 5 to 15 years | International Energy Agency |
| Procure cables | 2 to 3 years | International Energy Agency |
| Secure large power transformers | Up to 4 years | International Energy Agency |
What it means for AI
The IEA notes that in its highest-growth scenario, long grid connection queues mean that much of the extra electricity for data centres would be met by fossil fuels, simply because those plants can be connected sooner. Operators respond by choosing sites near existing capacity, planning connections years ahead, adding on-site power and storage, and offering to be flexible so that they can connect sooner.
What is not certain
- Connection times differ greatly by country, region and grid operator; the figures here come mostly from the United States and global averages.
- Queues include many projects that will never be built, so their size overstates real demand.
- Supply chains for cables and transformers may ease or tighten as factories expand.
Sources and method
- Rand and others, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Queued Up: 2025 Edition, Characteristics of Power Plants Seeking Transmission Interconnection As of the End of 2024, December 2025. https://eta-publications.lbl.gov/publications/queued-2025-edition-characteristics
- International Energy Agency, Electricity Grids and Secure Energy Transitions, executive summary, 2023. https://www.iea.org/reports/electricity-grids-and-secure-energy-transitions/executive-summary
- International Energy Agency, Building the Future Transmission Grid, executive summary, 2025. https://www.iea.org/reports/building-the-future-transmission-grid/executive-summary
- International Energy Agency with the Korea Energy Economics Institute, Energy and AI in East Asia, revised April 2026. https://iea.blob.core.windows.net/assets/431d7d22-039e-46d3-9832-090a8b4075fc/EnergyandAIinEastAsia.pdf
- International Energy Agency, Energy and AI, chapter Energy supply for AI, 2025 (no date shown on the page). https://www.iea.org/reports/energy-and-ai/energy-supply-for-ai
Method: each link was opened on 29 October 2026 and every figure was taken from the page cited beside it. No figure was estimated.
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This article provides general information, not investment advice or an offer of securities.