Up to 50% of data center capacity slated for 2026 could be delayed

A recent market outlook from energy intelligence firm Currence estimates that between 30% and 50% of the large-scale data center capacity expected to come online in 2026 will likely be delayed, due to mounting power constraints, construction bottlenecks and increasingly unreliable project timelines.

The report, which tracks 777 announced AI factories and large data centers exceeding 50 megawatts, shows an industry announcing projects far faster than it can build them. Since 2024, developers have announced approximately 190 gigawatts of future capacity, with approximately 16 GW scheduled to begin operations during 2026.

However, Currence found that only about 5 GW of that capacity is currently under construction, leaving roughly 11 GW remains in the announced stage with no visible construction progress, despite typical build timelines of 12–18 months.

“The announced pipeline suggests another year of explosive growth,” the report said, “but 30–50% of that pipeline is unlikely to come online before the end of the year.”

The findings highlight the growing reality that there are a lot of challenges involved in data center construction, from local opposition to finding skilled construction workers. Building them is proving a lot harder than planning them.

According to Currence, project schedules have already proven increasingly unreliable. During 2025, more than one quarter of expected capacity missed projected completion dates, while another 10% of projects quietly postponed their commercial operation dates. It’s not looking like things will get any better in 2026.

A primary obstacle is electricity. After a number of instances where local citizens saw their electric bill skyrocket after a data center opened up shop in their neighborhood, there has been tremendous pushback from cities and states on large scale data centers. In some instances, operators are being required to provide their own power rather than get power from the public grid, according to Currence.

Althou…