Texas mandates audits for data centers before grid connections

Texas just threw a wrench into the plans of every data center operator waiting in line to plug into the state’s power grid. And that line is very, very long. Governor Greg Abbott directed the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) to verify and audit all new data center proposals before they can proceed further in the interconnection queue. The stated goal: “keep the grid stable and reliable.” The practical effect: a freeze on approvals that hits crypto miners right where it hurts. 474 gigawatts of demand, and most of it is data centers ERCOT’s interconnection queue currently holds over 474 GW of new load requests. Roughly 90% of those come from data centers. To put 474 GW in perspective, the entire US grid capacity sits somewhere around 1,300 GW. Texas alone is fielding requests that represent more than a third of the country’s total generating capacity. Under the new directive, data centers seeking grid connections must now provide detailed information across several categories. They need to disclose state and local incentives they’ve received. They must explain how much they’d rely on ERCOT’s grid versus their own self-gen...