ALBANY, New York — State lawmakers are grappling with what policies to adopt to address the risks posed by new data centers, which could lead to rising utility costs.
The latest public data shows that more than 10 gigawatts of new energy requests are pending in New York. The majority of those are linked to data centers for artificial intelligence.
“This increased electricity consumption, combined with the accompanying need for infrastructure and generation to serve these large energy users, is a cost that is currently borne by all ratepayers, and could further strain already cash-strapped New Yorkers,” said Assemblymember Didi Barrett, chair of the Energy Committee, during a Thursday hearing on data centers. “As utility costs continue to rise, more and more New Yorkers struggle to pay their bills.”
Why it matters: The state is seeing a surge in large AI projects that need a significant amount of energy and are pushing to hook up to the electricity system. It’s a trend playing out around the country — and comes as New York officials struggle to address rising energy costs and achieve ambitious renewable energy goals.
