Data Center Boom Needs More Gas-Fired Power, New AEP CEO Says

The immense energy demands of data centers will likely require building natural gas-burning power plants, solar and wind farms and perhaps small nuclear reactors, said the new chief executive of American Electric Power Co.

“It’s a jigsaw puzzle,” Bill Fehrman said in an interview. “We just have to challenge ourselves on how we can serve all this load and continue to make progress on our climate goals.”

Fehrman, who assumed AEP’s top job on Thursday, joins the company as utilities worldwide scramble to meet rising electricity demand from the data centers that enable artificial intelligence. AEP, based in Columbus, Ohio, ...