AI data center construction is in full swing. How can the power supply system meet the challenges?

2026-04-04 00:14:04

Abstract generation in progress

【Caixin Global】 Starting in 2025, the rapid development of AI data centers (AIDC) at home and abroad will bring new challenges to the power supply system due to their high energy-consumption needs.

On April 2, at the 14th International Energy Storage Summit and Exhibition, Guo Yunzheng, deputy director of the Energy Products Department of the Intelligent Computing Energy Business Center of China Mobile Energy Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd., said that the high energy-consumption demand of AI data centers brings three new challenges to power supply systems: high power, high volatility, and high capacity.

With the power consumption of GPU (graphics processing unit) chips continuing to rise, the power of a single server rack continues to increase, which will put pressure on distribution capacity and cooling systems. Guo Yunzheng said that the domestic server power density is moving from 40 kilowatts per single rack to the megawatt level, and is expected to expand to 250 kilowatts in 2028. Once the power of a single server rack breaks through this level, the power-supplying capacity of existing uninterruptible power supply systems will face a bottleneck. It will not only be unable to meet high-power demand, but will also lead to a significant increase in losses due to the larger transmission current in the lines, with the added-loss level potentially around 60%.

View Original

This page may contain third-party content, which is provided for information purposes only (not representations/warranties) and should not be considered as an endorsement of its views by Gate, nor as financial or professional advice. See Disclaimer for details.

1 Likes