As artificial intelligence drives unprecedented demand for data center capacity, one challenge is becoming increasingly clear: power is difficult to obtain.

In many regions, utilities are struggling to keep pace with new data center development. Electrical interconnections that once took months may now require years. New substations can cost millions of dollars and significantly delay projects.

When power becomes the limiting factor, every kilowatt matters.

This is where Power Usage Effectiveness, or PUE, becomes important.

PUE is one of the most widely used metrics in the data center industry because it helps owners understand how much of their electrical power is actually reaching the servers that generate...

Over the past few years, I've noticed a shift in the questions building owners are asking.

Ten years ago, many projects were focused on reducing utility bills.

A few years ago, much of the discussion centered around incentives such as 179D, utility rebates, and LEED certification.

Today, more owners are asking about carbon emissions, electrification, net zero buildings, and long-term decarbonization plans.

That often leads to a term that sounds more complicated than it really is:

Building Decarbonization Roadmap.

So what is a decarbonization roadmap, and does it require an energy model?

A building decarbonization roadmap is...

Many projects applying to the FCM Green Municipal Fund include an energy model.

Far fewer include one that actually reflects how the building operates.

On paper, the model may look reasonable. The report is clean. The savings appear solid.

But if the assumptions are off, the results are off. And when funding decisions are based on those results, that becomes a real risk.

Programs supported by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), including the Green Municipal Fund (GMF), are designed to support projects that deliver measurable environmental and energy performance improvements.

At a high level, that means:

The Investment Tax Credit (ITC) is one of the most powerful financial incentives available for energy projects in the United States. It allows building owners and developers to recover a significant percentage of project costs as a direct reduction in federal tax liability.

For projects involving solar, battery storage, geothermal, and other qualifying systems, the ITC can dramatically improve project economics by lowering upfront costs and accelerating payback.

But here’s what most people miss:

➤ The value of the ITC is not fixed. It depends on how the project is designed, documented, and structured.

Small decisions—like how costs...