Google, Microsoft, Meta and other tech companies are pushing back against an effort by Midwestern utilities to suspend competitive bidding for transmission projects linked to data centers.
Nine utilities petitioned the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in April to suspend competition for five years, citing the “speed to power” push by the artificial intelligence industry. The so-called Grid Acceleration Coalition argued that putting projects out to bid causes significant delays to powering data centers.
Tech companies don’t agree.
“To the contrary, the time dedicated to competitive solicitations represents a critical upfront regulatory check that insulates captive ratepayers from long-term financial exploitation,” the Electricity Consumers Resource Council and Electricity Customer Alliance wrote in a May 27 FERC filing. Both groups represent large energy users. ECA advocates for the tech industry’s grid policy preferences.
