The great convergence

AI-driven data center demand is redrawing the map of energy infrastructure. In this paper, Nuveen's Energy Infrastructure Credit team examines the wave of vertical integration sweeping across utilities, hyperscalers, and private capital — from the proposed NextEra-Dominion merger to Google's acquisition of Intersect Power and the DigitalBridge acquisition of ArcLight. The paper also explores why on-site gas generation has emerged as the dominant bridge solution to grid bottlenecks, with an estimated 114 GW global pipeline, and how battery storage is becoming an essential component of next-generation data center power systems. For infrastructure credit investors, understanding this convergence is essential to identifying where value is being created — and where the legacy models are breaking down.