NextEra Energy 与 Dominion Energy 的拟议合并规模达 4,200 亿美元，将以每股 76 美元的股票对价、约 1,240 亿美元企业价值（含 567 亿美元债务）完成，成为今年最大交易之一。此案源于 Project Astra，旨在巩固对维吉尼亚州 Ashburn「data centre alley」及美国东岸电网的控制；该区已有 150 多座资料中心，并有更多项目规划中。

这笔交易反映 AI 热潮下公用事业从平淡稳定资产转为关键基础设施守门人的转变，但也引发更强烈的政治与监管反弹。NextEra 必须说服 South Carolina、North Carolina 与尤其是 Virginia 的监管机构，避免 360 万名客户承担更高电费；公司估计 18 个月内可获批，但分析师警告程序可能更久。若遭否决，NextEra 需支付 48 亿美元分手费。

数据显示压力已在上升：Virginia 电价自 2025 年 2 月以来上涨 12%，全国上涨 7%，而 NextEra 承诺为 Carolinas 与 Virginia 客户提供 22 亿美元帐单抵减。合并后集团称管线中还有 130 GW 的潜在资料中心相关需求，足以为多达 1.3 亿户家庭供电；这也说明 Microsoft、Amazon、Google 与 Meta 正以数千亿美元投入 AI 基础设施，推高对电力的需求。

NextEra Energy’s proposed merger with Dominion Energy is valued at $420bn and would be paid for in stock at an equivalent of $76 a share, implying an enterprise value of almost $124bn including $56.7bn of debt. The deal, coded Project Astra, is designed to secure control of Virginia’s Ashburn “data centre alley,” where more than 150 data centres already operate and more are planned, giving the combined company major influence over the eastern US grid.

The transaction highlights how AI has turned utilities into strategic assets, but it is likely to face intense political and regulatory scrutiny. NextEra must win approval in South Carolina, North Carolina and especially Virginia, where 3.6mn customers already face rising power costs; management says approval could come within 18 months, though analysts see a longer and more uncertain process. If regulators block it, NextEra would owe Dominion a $4.8bn break fee.

Cost pressures are already visible: electricity prices are up 12 per cent in Virginia since February 2025 and 7 per cent nationally, while NextEra has promised $2.2bn in bill credits for customers in the Carolinas and Virginia. The combined group says it has 130GW of prospective data-centre-related demand in its pipeline, enough to power as many as 130mn homes, underscoring how Microsoft, Amazon, Google and Meta are driving massive AI infrastructure spending and reshaping power markets.