Research center energy requirements

Is the research center intended to be a MASSIVE energy hog? I have it at level 3 now, to upgrade it to level 4 will require me to upgrade the power plant (currently lvl 8) twice. Going 8 to 9 on power plant only adds 172 energy, and a level 4 research center costs 192 energy per hour.

Then it becomes even more costly, as level 5 research center requires an additional 375 energy per hour. Level 10 power plant only adds another 176 energy per hour over a level 9, so I'll need at least a level 11, if not 12, power plant to sustain that. I'm terrified to consider that my power plant is going to need to be level 30ish just to have a research center at level 8 to train Special Forces. The cost of making those kinds of upgrades will mean essentially several weeks, if not months, before ever getting above the basic assault troop you start the game with.

I'm just inquiring if this is as intended due to the importance of the building, or if perhaps a better power requirement scaling could be looked into for the research center to make it a little more attainable. Thanks for taking the time to read!