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AI data center builds face transformer and utility coordination delays

Commercial Observer says transformers can take up to four years to arrive, while data centers themselves can be built in 18 months, creating schedule mismatches across power, cooling, and permitting.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Industry

Commercial Observer reports that while data centers can be built in about 18 months, the transformers needed to power them can take as long as four years to arrive, turning the overall timeline into a coordination problem rather than a construction-only issue.

The outlet says multiple infrastructure timelines must align, including power, cooling, electrical equipment procurement, permitting, construction schedules, and utility upgrades, and that any one component being ready does not guarantee the project will come together.

Commercial Observer highlights that contractors, utilities, and equipment manufacturers often work on different clocks, and points to PJM’s interconnection process as an example of how the bottleneck can shift over time.

It adds that even with PJM’s reformed interconnection process, roughly 57 gigawatts of projects have completed the study process, underscoring how coordination constraints can persist beyond interconnection reforms.

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