FILE PHOTO: The sun sets behind power lines above the plains north of Amarillo, Texas, U.S., March 14, 2017. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo

By Scott DiSavino

(Reuters) -U.S. power consumption will hit record highs in 2025 and 2026, the Energy Information Administration said in its short-term energy outlook (STEO) on Tuesday.

The EIA projected power demand will rise to 4,187 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) in 2025 and 4,305 billion kWh in 2026, up from a record 4,097 billion kWh in 2024.

Those demand increases come in part from data centers dedicated to artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency and as homes and businesses use more electricity and less fossil fuel for heat and transportation.

The EIA forecast power sales in 2025 will rise to 1,508 billion kWh for residential consumers, 1,482 billion kWh for commercial customers, and 1,055 billion kWh for industrial customers.

Those forecasts compare to all-time highs of 1,509 billion kWh for residential consumers in 2022, 1,434 billion kWh in 2024 for commercial customers, and 1,064 billion kWh for industrial customers in 2000.

The EIA said the share of power generation for natural gas would slide from 42% in 2024 to 40% in 2025 and 2026. Coal's share will rise from 16% in 2024 to 17% in 2025 before sliding back to 16% in 2026 as renewable output rises.

The percentage of renewable generation will rise from 23% in 2024 to 25% in 2025 and 26% in 2026, while nuclear power's share will slide from 19% in 2024 to 18% in 2025 and 2026, according to the outlook.

The EIA projected gas sales in 2025 would rise to 13.1 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) for residential consumers, 9.8 bcfd for commercial customers, and 23.5 bcfd for industrial customers, but fall to 35.8 bcfd for power generation.

That compares with all-time highs of 14.3 bcfd in 1996 for residential consumers, 9.6 bcfd in 2019 for commercial customers, 23.8 bcfd in 1973 for industrial customers, and 36.9 bcfd in 2024 for power generation.

(Reporting by Scott DiSavino; Editing by Richard Chang)