The head of one of the world’s largest asset managers says the AI boom is setting off a structural wave of investment that will transform energy markets.
In a new Bloomberg interview, Manny Roman, chief executive officer of Pacific Investment Management Co. (PIMCO), says the AI buildout is a “super secular opportunity” that spans both finance and infrastructure.
He points to a surge in demand for funding and equity tied to the rapid construction of data centers worldwide.
“There is an enormous need for funding and equity in data centers. I don’t know whether the $6.7 trillion from McKinsey is remotely right, but it’s very, very big. And there’ll be plenty of financing deals to be done, and there’ll be plenty of construction to be done.”
Roman says the trend is not confined to the US.
“It’s true in the US, but it’s true in other parts of the world. And the need also to have the infrastructure and the energy will come after that.”
He also says the energy component of the AI boom is just beginning to play out.
“So we all talk about data centers, but there’s going to be a real rush for energy in terms of providing the right setup for all these data centers. And you know that’s one of the reasons to be very bullish on natural gas.”
Earlier this year, McKinsey & Company released a report estimating that data centers will require nearly $7 trillion in capital outlays by 2030.
“Our research shows that by 2030, data centers are projected to require $6.7 trillion worldwide to keep pace with the demand for compute power. Data centers equipped to handle AI processing loads are projected to require $5.2 trillion in capital expenditures, while those powering traditional IT applications are projected to require $1.5 trillion in capital expenditures.”
Pacific Investment Management Co. (PIMCO), headquartered in Newport Beach, California, manages roughly $2 trillion in assets.
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