Regulators approve PGE’s 29% rate increase for Oregon data centers
The Oregon Public Utility Commission has approved Portland General Electric's request to increase electricity rates for large data centers by an average of 29%. This change, effective July 8, aims to prevent data center electricity needs from unfairly increasing bills for residential and small business customers, as mandated by the POWER Act (House Bill 3546).
The Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) has greenlit a significant rate hike for large data centers served by Portland General Electric (PGE), marking an average 29% increase in their electricity costs. This decision, effective July 8, is a direct result of a previous PUC order.
The mandate directed PGE to reassign certain costs to data centers to comply with House Bill 3546, commonly known as the POWER Act. The legislation and subsequent order are designed to ensure that the substantial electricity demands of data centers do not disproportionately burden the bills of Oregon households and small businesses.
Conversely, residential customers are expected to see a 1.3% decrease in their average electricity bills, while commercial customers will experience a 2.1% reduction, and other industrial customers a 1.4% decrease. The new rates will impact approximately 963,000 customers across PGE
’s service territory in Oregon.