Electricity Scarcity Meets Aluminum Tariffs, and American Citizens Pick Up the Bill - CleanTechnica

The article from CleanTechnica highlights the growing conflict between the rising electricity demands of AI data centers and the traditional aluminum smelting industry in the United States. Utilities facing limited generation and transmission capacity prioritize customers who can pay more and accept shorter contracts—typically AI data centers—over aluminum smelters, which require long-term, low-cost electricity contracts to remain viable. Aluminum smelting is highly electricity-intensive, operating continuously with power costs as the primary input, whereas AI data centers have more flexibility to pay higher prices and shift loads geographically. This structural imbalance has contributed to the long-term decline of U.S. primary aluminum production, which has been ongoing for decades due to globalization, aging plants, rising power costs, and environmental regulations. By the early 2020s, only four primary aluminum smelters remained in the U.S., supplying a fraction of national demand, with recycling and imports filling the gap. In 2025, the U.S. government sharply increased tariffs on imported aluminum—up