Evergy has signed electric service agreements for 3 gigawatts of large-load capacity, primarily with data centers, company executives announced during a second-quarter earnings call on Thursday. The utility plans to construct more than 5 GW of new generation capacity through 2032 to meet surging demand, according to CEO and Chairman David Campbell. The agreements mark a sharp acceleration in commercial and industrial electricity consumption driven by the data center boom.
The signed contracts include 2.5 GW under Evergy's large-load power service tariff specifically for data centers, plus an additional 500 MW for smaller industrial customers not covered by that tariff. To serve this new demand, Evergy's planned generation build-out includes 3.9 GW of natural gas capacity, nearly 800 MW of solar, and 450 MW of battery storage. The company's existing generation fleet has a capacity of roughly 15.8 GW, meaning the expansion would add about a third to its current infrastructure. Weather-adjusted electricity demand climbed 1.8% year over year and 3.3% in the first half of 2026, driven largely by commercial and industrial customers, with commercial demand alone rising 4% year to date as data center projects begin drawing power.
The large-load customer ramps are already in motion and "are expected to continue building in aggregate through 2030 and beyond," CFO and Executive Vice President Bryan Buckler said during the call. These signed agreements underpin Evergy's projection of 7% to 8% growth in retail sales through 2030, an expectation the company raised from 6% in late 2025 after seeing increased interest from industrial customers. Beyond the 3 GW already contracted, Campbell said Evergy is in "advanced discussions" with clients representing roughly 1 to 2 GW of additional large loads who have secured land or land rights and signed letters of agreement, with most of that capacity expected to come online after 2030. The remaining pipeline of projects not yet in active negotiation totals "well over 10 additional GW," he added, and the company expects to finalize at least one more electric service agreement in 2026.
The generation capacity outlined in Evergy's recent integrated resource plans isn't reflected in the utility's current five-year capital expenditure plan of $21.6 billion, which was announced in February. Serving incremental load beyond the 3 GW already signed will require additional generation resources and capital spending, Campbell explained, noting that cost trends for new generation align with what other utilities are experiencing. Evergy estimates its pending resource plans would add roughly $1 billion in capital investment. The company's executives indicated that momentum with the customer pipeline and discussions on new projects remains strong and should carry into 2027, reflecting sustained interest from data center operators seeking reliable power for energy-intensive computing operations.
The outlook centers on managing a wave of industrial electricity demand unlike anything Evergy has faced in recent years. With data centers driving commercial consumption higher and more gigawatts of contracts in negotiation, the utility is positioning itself for expansion well into the next decade. The company's ability to secure additional electric service agreements and fund the corresponding infrastructure build-out will determine whether it can capture the full opportunity from the data center boom now reshaping regional power markets.