Representatives from major technology and artificial intelligence companies met at the White House yesterday to discuss electricity needs for data centers and how to alleviate the increased costs of electricity because of data center demand on the general public. The discussion was centered around President Donald Trump’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge, which he issued with technology companies guaranteeing that data center energy needs will not increase household electricity costs. Instead, according to the pledge, “these companies will build, bring, or buy the new generation resources and electricity needed to satisfy their energy demands, and pay for all new power delivery infrastructure upgrades to service their data centers.” The seven largest technology companies also agreed to voluntarily negotiate and pay separate rate structures with their utilities and relevant state governments. They also agreed to “invest in local communities” and “coordinate with grid generators to contribute to a more reliable grid.” Click here for the pledge. 

It is unclear what it means for the many new data center proposals. It could mean more data center proposals with electric generating facilities (which could range from solar to natural gas to micro-nuclear facilities) as part of the campus, a concept being encouraged in Pennsylvania by the Shapiro Administration and General Assembly. Efforts are underway in Pennsylvania as well to ensure that data center developers pay for the cost of grid improvements to deliver electricity to these facilities. However, as electric generating facilities are not regulated in Pennsylvania, it is unclear how the pledge would impact these rates in the short or long term.