Tech Industry Expansion Straining Clean Energy Goals in Oregon and Washington

The rapid expansion of data center facilities in Oregon and Washington is forcing regional utilities to buy more natural gas and coal-powered electricity, according to analyses released by two Pacific Northwest research and advocacy organizations, with implications that reach into Idaho’s energy landscape through shared regional power markets.

The Columbia Riverkeeper, based in Hood River, Oregon, and the Seattle-based Sightline Institute both examined utility load data and found that a handful of utilities have absorbed nearly all the new data center demand over the past decade. Of more than 100 electric utilities operating across Oregon and Washington, just two private investor-owned utilities, PacifiCorp and Portland General Electric, along with four public utility districts and cooperatives, have taken on virtually all of the new data center loads.

The scale of growth is striking. Umatilla Electric Cooperative, which serves a stretch of the Columbia River Gorge where Amazon and other technology companies have built large data centers, saw its load grow more than 500 percent over the last decade. Amazon alone has invested roughly $60 billion in Oregon since 2010. To meet that surging demand, Umatilla and similar utilities have turned to wholesale electricity markets, purchasing far more unspecified power than they did ten years ago, including electricity generated from coal and gas.

Washington’s largest utility, Puget Sound Energy, has contracted for six new gas turbines to be installed at an undisclosed location in the state. Federal energy officials have also pointed to data center demand as a reason to keep Washington’s largest coal plant operating.

Audrey Leonard of Columbia Riverkeeper put it plainly: “In the absence of enough renewable energy supply, we’re seeing utilities turn more to gas in this situation. That is new, because up until the last few years we were making progress towards our clean energy targets in Washington and Oregon.”

Climate Targets Slipping

Oregon established emissions reduction targets under a 2020 executive order from then-Governor Kate Brown. The state aimed to cut greenhouse gas emissions 45 percent below 1990 levels by 2035, with a longer-term goal of 80 percent reduction by 2050. As recently as 2023, Oregon’s own Department of Energy modeling showed the state was on track to meet those benchmarks.

That outlook has since changed. A more recent report projects Oregon will not reach its 2035 target until 2037, a delay attributed to data center demand growth, changes to federal fuel economy standards, and rollbacks by the Trump administration. Some public utility districts have also begun permitting gas-powered generators specifically to provide backup energy for data center operations, and some data center operators are installing their own on-site gas generators.

To get back on track, analysts estimate Oregon and Washington would need to replace at least 65 million megawatt hours of existing coal and gas generation with renewable sources. Natural gas is composed almost entirely of methane, which carries its own emissions concerns beyond carbon dioxide.

The Sightline Institute’s 2025 analysis found that utilities in both states began seeing unspecified wholesale power purchases drive up emissions as far back as 2019. Meanwhile, the tech companies building these facilities have made public commitments to clean energy. Microsoft, for example, set a goal of 100 percent renewable energy coverage globally by 2025. Amazon says its data centers run about 10 percent more efficiently than the industry average, though that efficiency has not offset the raw scale of power consumption.

Regional Market Connections

North Idaho utilities draw from the same regional transmission network as Oregon and Washington providers. When neighboring states shift their generation mix toward more gas and away from renewables, those changes ripple through wholesale electricity prices and supply availability across the Northwest. As large technology companies continue selecting Columbia River Gorge locations for new facilities, the pressure on regional power infrastructure is unlikely to ease in the near term.

Utilities in both states have cited regional energy reliability needs as justification for decisions that deviate from state-level climate requirements. Whether state regulators in Oregon and Washington accept those arguments will shape the energy mix available to all Northwest ratepayers for years ahead.

For more on infrastructure and development stories affecting North Idaho, see our recent coverage of Sandpoint’s Long Bridge pedestrian path closure following a structural inspection.

North Idaho Republican Staff