Trump Keeps Greenlighting Requests to Push Data Centers Off the Grid - News of the United States
The Energy Department is issuing emergency orders allowing grid operators like Southwest Power Pool and PJM Interconnection to direct data centers to use backup generators during peak demand to prevent blackouts. This highlights the strain data centers are placing on the electrical grid, especially in regions with high concentrations of facilities. PJM is also proposing a registry to track large energy users and enforce off-grid operation during emergencies.
The US Energy Department has repeatedly issued emergency authorizations, known as 202(c) orders, enabling grid operators like Southwest Power Pool (SPP) and PJM Interconnection to compel data centers to switch to their own backup generators during periods of high electricity demand, such as heat waves. These orders, granted six times since May, cover 30 states with significant data center concentrations and underscore the intense strain data centers place on the nation's electrical grids, according to Ari Peskoe of Harvard's Electricity Law Initiative.
While grid operators have not yet enforced these measures this summer, the authorizations reveal the limitations facing the Trump administration's push for unfettered data center development for the artificial intelligence industry. A specific incident in Northern Virginia saw a group of data centers abruptly disconnect, causing voltage disturbances felt as far as Chicago. In response, PJM is proposing a new registry to monitor large energy users and their power supplies, allowing for mandatory off-grid operation or power reduction during grid emergencies, aligning with the administration's goal for data centers to self-supply power. Junbo Zhao, an engineering professor at Dartmouth, emphasizes that while useful for avoiding outages and public relations issues, backup generators are not a long-term solution due to increased emissions and the need for better energy generation and coordination between data centers and grid operators.