Google and Amazon are assuring federal regulators they can pay for electricity generated at power plants adjacent to their power-hungry data centers and boost grid reliability at the same time.
The technology giants and 35 others this week weighed into a discussion at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission about the rules for “co-location” — locating a large source of electricity consumption such as a data center next to a power plant. The near-universal message from powerful players in the technology and power industries: clarify the rules.
FERC has largely addressed co-location on a case-by-case basis. But commissioners have indicated they intend to weigh in more directly to specific issues about the effect on the grid and electricity prices. Companies with a stake in what FERC ultimately says are exploring co-locating data centers with nuclear reactors or natural gas generation or utility-scale renewable energy projects.
For tech companies like Google and Amazon, co-location offers a near-term means to power their energy-intensive artificial intelligence data centers. Big tech companies and advanced manufacturers are driving up projected demand, according to a report from Grid Strategies.
