Operation Gigawatt
Powering Utah's Energy Future
Utah, like the rest of the globe, is headed towards an energy crisis due to increased power demand and decreasing supply. While some special interests call for reductions in energy consumption, the reality is we need significantly more power to meet current and future energy needs. Our health, well-being and quality of life depend on it.
We have a generational opportunity before us, and Operation Gigawatt will honor the legacy we've inherited by ensuring our energy is reliable, affordable, secure and clean for generations to come.
Energy exists for one reason: to meet human needs. From the first spark ignited by our ancestors to the monumental achievement of sending rovers to far-off planets, humanity has harnessed energy to propel us ever forward. Today, we stand on the cusp of a new era in energy.
Why are We Headed for an Energy Crisis?
There are four major factors driving the energy crisis: Population growth, Electrification, Energy-Intensive Industries and Retirement of Reliable Baseload (24/7 on demand) Resources.Utah is blessed with an abundance of diverse energy resources. We have it all and we're good stewards of our resources. With Operation Gigawatt, Utah will use our resources to enrich he lives of Utahns and Americans as we grapple with this energy crisis.
Population Growth
Utah's population is set to grow by 2.2 million people by 2060. That's good for our economy and growth, but will require more energy.
Electrification
Energy-Intensive Industries
Energy demand is significantly accelerated by energy-intensive industries like artificial intelligence (AI) and data centers. Utah will feel the impact of these industries whether they are here or in neighboring states.
Data centers could use as much as 9% of U.S. electricity by 2030, according to the Electric Power Research Institute. A single AI or data center can demand 100s of Megawatts. One MW powers about 609 average Utah homes.
Retirement of Reliable Baseload
About 67% of our energy-generating plants that provide us with energy on demand 24/7 will be offline in less than 20 years, and only 16% of those will be replaced with resources able to provide the same amount of energy.
Reliable energy sources keep us warm, cook our food, enable communications across the globe, and power the medical advancements that save lives. Our health, our well-being, our very quality of life depend on energy.Operation Gigawatt: Four Key Areas
Energy is the foundation on which modern society is built. When we learned to harness energy, we traded calories spent on subsistence for electrons that unleashed human potential on a scale never seen before. Today, some special interests call for reductions in energy consumption, but the reality is we need significantly more power to meet current and future energy needs. Energy is critical if we are to meet to meet increased demand, Utah is committed to doubling its reliable energy production in the next 10 years. Operation Gigawatt will focus on four key areas to create an abundance of energy.
Increasing transmission capacity so more power can placed on the grid and moved to where it's needed.
Geothermal energy and nuclear energy are promising new energy resources that the state is investigating.