Data Centers Can Have Both: Reliability and Sustainability Start at Specification

The data center buildout underway across North America is moving at full speed and may even surpass original forecasts. Facility owners have shifted from planning incremental expansions to planning in gigawatts. The demand for data, driven by the rapid adoption and maturation of AI, has changed expectations, yet one long-held assumption persists: reliability and sustainability are competing priorities and that data center owners have to choose between running hard and running clean. At the power infrastructure layer, that simply isn’t true. The electrical decisions made during the design phase can help data center owners accomplish both without compromise.

While AI workloads are the fastest-growing source of data center power demand, they currently represent only about 14% of total consumption, with cloud computing and traditional storage workloads accounting for the rest. Nonetheless, AI-driven power needs are projected to rise 175% by 2030, and according to a 2025 Synergy Research Group report, nearly 1,300 hyperscale data centers are operating globally, with 770 more in the pipeline.

In many regions, grid connections simply cannot keep pace with demand. Island power and microgrid solutions are serving as stopgaps, but they are not long-term solutions. The facilities being built today need infrastructure designed to power smarter and operate greener over a 20-year service life, and that conversation starts at the cable.

Overhead power cables are the first critical link in a data center’s power delivery chain. By specifying high-temperature, low-sag overhead conductors designed for extreme climate conditions, data center owners can increase ampacity and improve transmission reliability while using existing rights-of-way and towers, thereby reducing environmental disruption and the carbon footprint of new corridor construction. That dual benefit stems from proper specification, in which reliability and sustainability are treated as a combined engineering goal rather than competing challenges.

The same principle applies as power crosses the facility threshold. Both medium- and high-voltage systems require advanced insulation and jacket materials capable of withstanding heat, moisture, and mechanical stress across a wide range of conditions. Undersized or inadequately rated conductors, or those not suited to the specific environment, will degrade more quickly, cause line losses, and shorten the asset’s service life. A conductor engineered and specified for its actual operating environment lasts longer, degrades more predictably, and requires fewer repairs and longer intervals between replacements. Without the need for interventions, a long asset service life translates to improved sustainability, with less material waste and lower embodied carbon. The infrastructure decisions that protect uptime are, by definition, the same decisions that reduce long-term environmental impact.

Leading hyperscalers are already experiencing a shift in expectations, with major operators now required to account for Scope 3 emissions across their supply chains and local community boards seeking detailed information on environmental impact and energy consumption. As a result, sustainability criteria, rather than being an afterthought, are being moved earlier into the specification stage, alongside performance requirements. Hyperscalers with Scope 3 reporting requirements are increasingly relying on Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), which provide third-party-verified, cradle-to-gate carbon data under ISO 14025, to evaluate product options during the design stage.

Virgin copper from ore can carry a heavy carbon cost, yet the embodied carbon in wire and cable is often overlooked in favor of more visible sources like concrete and steel. Opting for products manufactured with recycled copper content, which uses about 85% less energy to produce, offers another lever in Scope 3 reporting, giving procurement teams documented, reportable CO2 reductions without compromising conductor performance.

Early coordination is essential for data center owners seeking to prioritize both reliability and sustainability, especially when demand has strained supply chain delivery dates. As backlogs grow, MV cable lead times can often exceed 50 weeks. If conductors are treated as a downstream procurement item rather than specified early, the consequences are immediate and ripple across the mechanical, structural, and commissioning scopes simultaneously.  Similarly, designing for sustainability from the start helps reduce emissions and avoid costly retrofits. Capacity agreements with manufacturers, early utility engagement, and pull studies conducted during design offer opportunities to maintain construction timelines.

The industry has long accepted the reliability-versus-sustainability trade-off as an engineering reality, but in fact, the success of each depends on the same criteria: early coordination, proper specification for actual conditions, a long service life, and verified performance and environmental data. The data centers being built today will likely operate for upwards of 30 years, possibly more. Power infrastructure decisions made now will determine whether those facilities can handle the load profiles of future generations, withstand increasingly severe weather events, and satisfy strict reporting requirements. Data centers built with thoughtful, balanced specifications can run both hard and clean for the decades to come.