In an era of A.I. and data centers, the struggle to power American industries will only intensify. Access to renewable energy, such as solar power, is looking less attractive to the American economy as carbon capture technology improves.

According to the Energy Information Administration, 2024 was a record year for energy consumption, largely driven by improvements to A.I. software such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and X’s Grok. The EIA also projects that consumption will increase in 2025 and 2026 as more datacenters are built and A.I. technology improves.

Charlotte Jacobs is an assistant professor at LSU’s E.J. Ourso College of Business. She has been studying the emergence and evolution of industries since she earned her doctorate eight years ago.

“The increase in demand for energy with A.I. data centers will also put a strain on the electric grid, which is outdated in many ways,” Jacobs said. “In addition, the fact that electric grids across states are not connected limits the potential as well. Hence, a redesign of energy distribution in the country is urgent.”

Jacobs said that while during the 2000s, solar energy companies in Europe, America and Japan dominated the market, the rise of Chinese solar energy companies in 2010 overtook Western markets because of their unmatched scale of production.

In America, nonrenewable resources continue to dominate the market. Recent executive actions by President Donald Trump have bolstered the fossil fuel industry, including prioritizing oil and gas subsidies and cutting former President Joe Biden’s “Solar for All” program, a $7 billion grant.

“The oil and gas industry has been heavily subsidized for a long time now. Somehow, subsidies for renewables are more scrutinized,” Jacobs said. “Besides subsidies, we as customers might require more renewable sources of electricity and demonstrate a willingness to pay a bit more for that electricity then.”

While solar energy succeeds in places like Europe where electricity is expensive, Jacobs said that the future of renewables in America lies in the future of carbon capture technology.

“This is because electricity from gas fueled power plants is more expensive compared to the US. As long as electricity remains relatively cheap, solar energy and renewables by extension will struggle to get a real footing,” Jacobs said. “It will depend on policy toward renewables as well as the advancement of some new technologies that are being developed.”

The Millenium Alliance for Humanity and Biosphere, based out of Stanford University, says the world will run out of oil by 2052, gas by 2060 and coal by 2090. Jacobs said that these predictions have been made previously and never realized, and that technology in fracking and extraction help extend the global oil supply

“The premium we pay for solar is somehow related to how cheap fossil fueled electricity is. Their cheapness is partially related to the subsidies the industry receives. Solar and other renewables can be an important source of energy for all of us, but we have to help it scale to become an equal player in the energy field.”

Gale Mahe is a sophomore bioengineering major and believes that while oil and gas is a cheaper option, they would rather pay for energy produced by solar or wind farms. Mahe said that while petroleum is cheap, it is not sustainable nor beneficial to society’s growth or well-being.

“I’ve seen first hand the negative effects of the oil/gas industry as someone born in ‘Cancer Alley,’” Mahe said in an email. “Oil/gas and coal plants do not have the proper regulations to prevent their particulates and waste products from entering the air, ground and water of our cities, destroying local ecosystems downstream and poisoning the populace.”

Mahe believes that the energy companies have a responsibility to consider the environmental impacts of their operations, noting that the quality of life and health of the community are more important than the bottom-line of electric companies.

“The question will be in how far these technologies will be able to scale or amplify their applicability to integrate more smoothly in our day to day activities,” Jacobs said. “It will depend on a multitude of factors: technological advancement, scaling, consumer demand, and government policies.”

According to Jacobs, the renewable energy industry is projected to grow through 2030, especially with the rise of A.I. data centers ​​— but not in America. Legislation passed in other countries such as Canada gives government subsidies to renewable forms of electricity over oil and gas companies.

“The problem is that, due to the monopolizing power of the energy industry [in America], there are very limited ways in which I can utilize renewables,” Mahe said. “All of our grids are designed to be reliant on gas, oil or other petrol products. For most people, it’s simply more convenient to rely on these pre-established systems, even with the benefits of renewables.”