Alliant targets 1 GW of new data-center contracts in six months as power demand surges

By Varun Sahay and Tyakshi Singh Oct 30 (Reuters) Alliant Energy expects to sign contracts for about 1 gigawatt of additional data-center demand within six months, its finance chief said on ​Friday, as rising AI use and growing electrification push ‌US power demand to record highs. The new load would add to the 3.4 GW that Alliant has already contracted with Alphabet s Google, Meta Platforms and Blackstone-backed QTS Data Centers. Earnings growth could exceed the company s 8% target if capital spending rises ‌further ​to support future load growth and other ⁠investment opportunities, Chief Financial Officer ⁠Robert Durian said on a post-earnings call. We continue to work on what I ll call capital upside for different opportunities, including the additional load growth that we may see from the data center ​prospects that we have,  Durian said. US electricity consumption hit an all-time high in 2025 and is expected to continue rising this year ⁠and the next as data-center capacity ⁠e