New House AI, Energy Working Group Issues RFI

The newly established House of Representatives’ AI and Energy Working Group is seeking information on the increase in energy demand we can expect due to the growing use of artificial intelligence (POLITICO Pro, subscription).

What’s going on: Group lead Rep. Julie Fedorchak (R-ND)—who was North Dakota’s head utility regulator for more than a decade prior to being elected to Congress last year—discussed the new working group with us Tuesday at NAM headquarters.

Rep. Fedorchak spoke at an event at the NAM on how the U.S. can strengthen the electrical grid, advance permitting reform and support manufacturers investing in the latest energy technologies.
The working group issued a request for information on Monday, “invit[ing] stakeholders to provide written responses” to questions under “three pillars,” according to the RFI document.

The details: These pillars are the following:

American Energy Dominance and AI Energy Demands: The RFI “seeks to identify strategies to secure a stable, affordable and sustainable domestic energy supply capable of powering next-generation AI infrastructure.” Subtopics on which respondents are asked to inform the working group include oil and gas, nuclear, solar, geothermal and other power production methods.
Securing the Energy Grid: A resilient, secure electrical grid is “essential” for AI systems and the larger “digital economy,” the document says. Permitting reform, electricity generation and baseload power are possible subtopics here.
Strategic Competition: Outpacing China: “In an era of intensifying global rivalry, ensuring American technological and energy leadership is critical.” Some of the subtopics under this pillar are manufacturing, critical minerals and chips.

Why it’s important: “To be AI dominant, we must first be energy dominant,” Rep. Fedorchak said in a statement, according to POLITICO Pro.

“In 2024, data centers accounted for 4.3% of total U.S. power demand, and analysts predict this could climb to as much as 12% by 2030—more electricity than the entire state of Texas uses today. Yet the U.S. isn’t scaling up reliable baseload power quickly enough to support this rapid growth.”

How to respond: Responses are due by May 15 and should be emailed to [email protected].