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AI Boom to Drive Data Center Fuel Cell Investment to $30 Billion by 2030, Rystad Says

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Data center developers are poised to increase spending on fuel-cell power systems more than tenfold by 2030 as the artificial intelligence boom strains electricity grids and forces operators to seek alternative energy sources, Rystad Energy strategists said in a note on Thursday.

Rystad analysts said revenue from fuel-cell deployments for data centers is projected to surge to about $30 billion by 2030, from about $2.8 billion in 2025.

The forecast underscores how the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure is reshaping energy investment patterns, with developers increasingly turning to on-site generation to avoid grid connection delays.

The shift comes as US grid interconnection timelines for large power loads have stretched to between three and six years, about triple the waiting period seen in 2015.

Rystad analysts said that, as a result, about 40% of the projected US data center capacity by 2030 is expected to pursue dedicated on-site power generation rather than relying solely on utility networks.

Fuel cells, renewable natural gas or hydrogen, are emerging as one of the leading solutions for securing reliable electricity supplies.

The analysts said that, unlike large-scale gas-fired power plants, fuel-cell systems can be deployed relatively quickly while producing lower on-site emissions.

The growing appetite for fuel-cell power is reflected in a contracted order book totaling about 9 gigawatts, including framework agreements with major operators such as Oracle (ORCL), American Electric Power Company (AEP), Equinix (EQIX) and Brookfield (BN).

Rystad projects that cumulative fuel-cell demand from data centers will reach 10.4 GW between 2026 and 2030.

"Power availability has become one of the defining constraints on data center growth, and operators are increasingly looking beyond the grid for solutions," said Lein Mann Bergsmark, vice president of clean-tech supply chain research at Rystad Energy.

"Fuel cells have moved from a niche application to a measurable part of the firm power mix."

North America is forecasted to dominate the market, accounting for about 91% of installed global on-site power-generation capacity by 2030.

The region benefits from persistent grid bottlenecks, federal tax incentives and a well-established fuel-cell manufacturing ecosystem.

Manufacturers are already moving to capitalize on the opportunity. Rystad said that aggregate operational and planned fuel-cell manufacturing capacity is projected to rise to 4 GW per year by 2030, compared with about 1.8 GW currently.

Solid oxide fuel cells have emerged as the preferred technology for continuous data center operations, accounting for about 53% of cumulative stationary fuel-cell deliveries globally.

Rystad projected that overall SOFC system costs will drop by 20% to 25% by 2030 as manufacturers ramp up output, which is expected to rise from 1.8 GW currently to 4 GW per year by 2030.

Price: $152.50, Change: $-5.03, Percent Change: -3.19%

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