Department of Energy sees potential to support the data center and AI market

The Trump administration plans to use U.S. Energy Department (DoE) resources and land to build AI data centers. 

Under the plan, the DoE said that co-locating data centers and new energy infrastructure on DoE lands can advance AI's utility while lowering energy costs—a key challenge for data center operators supporting AI.

The agency has released a Request for Information (RFI) to explore the possible use of DOE land for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure development to support the growing demand for data centers. 

DOE has identified 16 potential sites uniquely positioned for rapid data center construction, including in-place energy infrastructure that can fast-track permitting for new energy generation such as nuclear.

In tandem with President Trump‘s Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence and Unleashing American Energy Executive Orders, DOE is exploring opportunities to accelerate AI and energy infrastructure development across the country, prioritizing public-private partnerships to advance the use of innovative technologies and strategies.

Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said in a release, "The Department of Energy is taking important steps to leverage our domestic resources to power the AI revolution, while continuing to deliver affordable, reliable, and secure energy to the American people.”

To carry out its plan, DoE has sought input from data center developers, energy developers, and the broader public to advance this partnership further. The information collected will inform development, encourage private-public partnerships, and enable the construction of AI infrastructure at select DOE sites with a target of commencing operation by the end of 2027.

Another potential benefit is that these sites also offer the data center industry a chance to partner with DOE’s research facilities co-located on the sites, furthering advancements in the power systems design needed to run the centers and developing next-generation data center hardware. Appendices to the RFI provide publicly available information about each site, including location, available acreage, and other characteristics.

Finally, the RFI gathers information on potential development approaches, technology solutions, operational models, and economic considerations for establishing AI infrastructure.

For related articles, visit the Data Center Topic Center.
For more information on high-speed transmission systems and suppliers, visit the Lightwave Buyer’s Guide.
To stay abreast of fiber network deployments, subscribe to Lightwave’s Service Providers and Datacom/Data Center newsletters.