How much power does a data center use?

  • A single hyperscale data center typically consumes 300 to 500 megawatts of electricity — roughly the same as a small Michigan city.

How big is the demand facing Michigan utilities?

  • Consumers Energy has reported data center inquiries totaling more than 15 gigawatts of potential new demand.

  • For context, Consumers Energy’s historic peak demand is about 7.5 gigawatts.

What about DTE Energy?

  • DTE Energy has acknowledged discussions with developers representing multiple gigawatts of potential data center demand across its service territory.

Why does scale matter?

  • Data centers operate 24/7, unlike most commercial or industrial customers.

  • Their size means even small forecasting errors can have outsized impacts on utility planning and customer rates.

What protections are in place?

  • The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) requires large data center customers to sign special power supply contracts.

  • These agreements are designed to prevent costs from being shifted to residential and small business customers.

What are regulators watching most closely?

  • Long-term demand certainty

  • Who pays for new generation and transmission infrastructure

  • Backup power and grid reliability

  • Water use, noise, and land-use impacts

Why this matters now

  • AI workloads are growing faster than utilities projected.

  • Electrification and EV adoption are already increasing baseline demand.

  • Michigan electric rates are among the highest in the Midwest, heightening sensitivity to cost increases.