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The Power Surge: Factors Driving The Rising Demand for Electricity
Across the U.S., the power demand is climbing at one of the fastest rates in decades. As the economy becomes more reliant on electricity and data centers continue to sprout up in many parts of the country, electric cooperatives are preparing to meet the challenges that skyrocketing demand brings.
The North American Reliability Corporation, the watchdog for the U.S. electric grid, recently released the 2025-2026 winter reliability assessment, which echoed other recent reports, including longer-term outlooks that expect sufficient energy resources during normal conditions but potential supply shortfalls and outages under more intense weather conditions.
Extreme weather, coupled with additional factors that are driving increased demand, creates challenges for electric utilities, including cooperatives, in their mission to provide reliable power around the clock.
Several key factors are driving increased demand, including economic growth, expanded manufacturing, data center development, and increased electrification in transportation. Together, these trends are reshaping how much electricity we consume and how quickly utilities like High West Energy must adapt to meet future needs.
While increased demand presents new challenges for electric utilities, it also has the potential to create significant opportunities for co-ops and the communities they serve, such as job growth, steady revenue, and improved infrastructure. Electric co-ops are responding by planning carefully for the future—investing in grid modernization and offering programs and services to help co-op members conserve energy.
Our mission is to continue serving our members by providing safe, reliable, and reasonably priced energy and services. As the demand for power continues to grow, we actively address this challenge by evaluating different generation sources, new technologies that help manage peak demand, and identifying ways to reduce or shift load on our existing system. Strategic planning is critical to ensuring the grid can support everything from EV charging to large-scale manufacturing plants.
Electricity powers nearly every aspect of today's economy, and its role will only grow stronger. As electrification accelerates, long-term planning becomes more important than ever. High West Energy is ready to meet rising demand in our local communities. Through innovation, investment, and collaboration, we are preparing for a more reliable and resilient energy future.
Director's Corner - Mike Romsa, District 11
At High West Energy, safety is one of our top concerns, not only within the cooperative but also for the members in our communities. Each year, we hold CPR and automated external defibrillator (AED) training for our employees as part of our safety initiative, and with it being American Heart Month, it's essential to empower our communities to respond when every second counts.
One of the main benefits of CPR is the ability to help in the event of a heart attack or cardiac arrest. More than 436,000 Americans die each year from cardiac arrest. Immediate CPR can double or triple survival chances after a cardiac arrest by keeping blood and oxygen flowing. In addition, brain damage can behin within 4 minutes of a cardiac issue, and without intervention, death may follow within 4-6 minutes.
What You Can Do This American Heart Month:
- Get trained. Take a CPR, AED, and First Aid class through the Red Cross or AHA. Don't forget to keep an eye out for local classes as well. Even a few hours of training can give you the confidence and skills to respond effectively in an emergency.
- Spread awareness. Share CPR resources and encourage others to learn lifesaving techniques. Sharing hands-on CPR videos or local training opportunities helps spread knowledge and creates a network of potential responders.
- Promote AED access. Advocate for and ensure workplaces, schools, gyms, and community spaces have visible AEDs. It can mean the difference between life and death.
- Support preparedness. Urge employers and organizations to provide training and develop emergency plans.
- Foster the mindset to act. Encourage others to be ready to call 911, start CPR, and use an AED when available. When more people are willing and able to take these steps, we benefit from stronger, safer communities.
It is important to be prepared, as you can make a huge difference in someone's life with one simple training. During American Heart Month, let's turn awareness into action; a trained community is a community armed with the power to save lives.