Strategy

Data center power demand restructures electric arc furnace steel operations across PJM territory

• PJM Interconnection's projected 6.6-gigawatt supply deficit beginning in 2027 is restructuring electric arc furnace steel operations across its 13-state territory by driving wholesale power costs into direct competition with data center demand.
• Metallus and other specialty steelmakers report electricity costs rising approximately 70 percent since 2024, adding roughly $15 million in annual expenses that executives state cannot be passed to customers under existing market-pegged supply contracts.
• The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory projects data centers will consume up to 15.3 percent of total United States electricity by 2030, creating a structural prioritization dynamic where utilities may interrupt flexible steel mill loads to protect uninterrupted data center operations.
• The Steel Manufacturers Association is requesting emergency federal policies to delay the retirement of older generating plants, citing a four-and-a-half-year average permitting timeline for new power projects that fails to replace retiring baseload capacity.