(Bloomberg) -- Power demand on the largest US grid surged to a record on Thursday as temperatures soared above 100F (38C) across much of the mid-Atlantic, underscoring the strain on an electricity system already struggling to cope with a data-center boom.

PJM Interconnection LLC, which serves 67 million people across 13 states, said Friday that demand likely surpassed the previous record of 165.563 gigawatts set in August 2006. The official preliminary peak figure will come after a 60-day period needed to calculate the performance of its 6 gigawatt demand response resources.

“The peak load is likely to have surpassed the all-time PJM record,” it said.

It’s yet another indication that US electricity grids that underpin everything from residential air conditioners to hospital lighting have entered a new era amid the rush to expand artificial intelligence capacity. After two decades of stagnant demand, power consumption in the world’s largest economy is growing more rapidly than generation.

PJM published several emergency alerts this week as temperatures climbed. The Department of Energy issued an order to ensure that all generating units would operate at maximum capacity, including backup sources, to prevent blackouts. That’s already the second time it has had to do so this summer.

The PJM grid, home to “data-center alley” in Northern Virginia, forecast in May that summer demand would peak at 156 gigawatts, and described a scenario where it would climb to a record as “unlikely, but plausible.”

PJM has approximately 180 gigawatts of regular generation capacity. In addition, customers representing several gigawatts of consumption are contracted to curb usage during demand surges in exchange for rebates or temporary rate reductions. A gigawatt is equal to the capacity of a traditional nuclear reactor.

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