The rapid expansion of data centers, advanced manufacturing, electrification of transportation fleets, and other large energy users is bringing new opportunities — and new complexities — to electric cooperatives.
NRECA's Large Loads and Data Centers Learning Hub is a central resource designed to help electric cooperatives evaluate, plan for, and serve large loads. It brings together practical guidance, research, case studies, and tools that support informed decision making across technical, financial, operational, and strategic considerations.
The Learning Hub is intended to help cooperatives understand the opportunities and challenges associated with large load growth while protecting reliability, maintaining affordability for existing members, and supporting sound long-term planning.
[accordions]
[accordion title="Who%20Is%20This%20Information%20For%3F"]The Learning Hub is designed for all electric cooperative business models, including Generation and Transmission (G&T) cooperatives, distribution cooperatives, G&T-D cooperatives, and distribution cooperatives that are not affiliated with a G&T.
Whether a cooperative is evaluating its first large load opportunity, expanding service to existing large customers, or refining its long-term strategy, the resources provide practical information to support decision making.
[/accordion]
[accordion title="What%20is%20a%20Large%20Load%3F"]
There is no universal definition of a large load. What constitutes a large load depends on the size, characteristics, and operating conditions of each cooperative's electric system. In general, a large load is a customer whose electric demand is significant enough to influence system planning, infrastructure investments, power supply, rates, contracts, or day-to-day operations.
The Learning Hub addresses a variety of large load types, including:
- Data Centers (Hyperscale, Enterprise, Colocation, Modular/Edge, and Crypto)
- Manufacturing Facilities
- Industrial Processing
- Transportation and Logistics Hubs
- Other emerging large electric loads
Although many examples focus on data centers because of their rapid growth, the concepts, frameworks, and tools throughout the Learning Hub are intended to support cooperatives serving many different types of large loads.
[/accordion]
[/accordions]
KEY Topic Areas[section separator="true"]
[section-item 9]
[row]
[column 12]
[tiles medium color="primary" color-transparency="0.5" alignment="center" shape="square" style="flat" icon-color="primary" spacing="2x" responsive="true" layout="grid" text-color="highlight" text-size="25"]
[tile title="Rates%20and%20Contract%20Mechanisms" link="http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cooperative.com%2Fprograms-services%2Fbts%2FDocuments%2FSecure%2FLLDC-Learning-Hub-Document-Rates-and-Contracts-Mechanisms-July-2026.pdf"] [/tile]
[tile title="Environmental%20Impacts" link="http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cooperative.com%2Fprograms-services%2Fbts%2FDocuments%2FSecure%2FLLDC-Learning-Hub-Document-Environmental-Impacts-July-2026.pdf"] [/tile]
[tile title="Power%20Supply%20%26%20Resource%20Adequacy%20for%20Distribution%20Co-ops" link="http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cooperative.com%2Fprograms-services%2Fbts%2FDocuments%2FSecure%2FLLDC-Learning-Hub-Document-Power-Supply-and-Resource-Adequacy-Distribution-July-2026.pdf"] [/tile]
[tile title="Power%20Supply%20%26%20Resource%20Adequacy%20for%20G%26T%20Co-ops" link="http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cooperative.com%2Fprograms-services%2Fbts%2FDocuments%2FSecure%2FLLDC-Learning-Hub-Document-Power-Supply-and-Resource-Adequacy-G-and-T-July-2026.pdf"] [/tile]
[/tiles]
[/column]
[/row]
[row]
[column 12]
[tiles medium color="primary" color-transparency="0.5" alignment="center" shape="square" style="flat" icon-color="primary" spacing="2x" responsive="true" layout="grid" text-color="highlight" text-size="25"]
[tile title="Community%20Engagement%20-%20Coming%20Soon!"] [/tile]
[tile title="System%20Impact%20-%20Coming%20Soon!"] [/tile]
[tile title="Flexibility%20%26%20Market%20Interaction%20-%20Coming%20Soon!"] [/tile]
[tile title="Economic%20Impact%20%26%20Development%20-%20Coming%20Soon!%20"] [/tile]
[/tiles]
[/column]
[/row]
[/section-item]
[section-item 3]
[row]
[column 12][/column]
[/row]
[/section-item]
[/section]
[well title="Join%20the%20Large%20Loads%20and%20Data%20Centers%20Task%20Force" color="primary-dark" text-color="highlight"]Interested in providing feedback and engaging with other members for discussion about serving large loads and data centers and related NRECA resources? Co-op members are invited to apply to join our Large Loads and Data Centers Task Force. Read about this opportunity in our
Advisory here and submit your application
here.[/well]
