Data centers authorized to use backup power to avoid outages

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued an emergency order, for the third time in less than three weeks, authorizing PJM Interconnection to direct data centers and other large industrial users across 13 states and Washington D.C. to switch to backup generators. U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright issued the order as a last resort to ensure grid stability during a severe heat wave, also waiving certain environmental permitting restrictions for power generators, including a natural gas plant in Hazleton, Pennsylvania. PJM Chief Operating Officer Frederick S. Bresler cited high forecasted temperatures and the risk of emergency conditions as reasons for the request, which aims to prevent power outages in critical facilities.

This directive comes as data centers' rapidly growing electricity demands are outpacing the development of new power plants, straining the existing grid. PJM has noted that data center development often occurs two to three times faster than the necessary electric generation technologies. Locally, data center campuses can require hundreds of megawatts of power, with their on-site generators rivaling or exceeding the output of local power plants.

In Northeast Pennsylvania, this order is prompting municipalities and opponents to re-evaluate data center developments. Previously, regulations assumed generators would run only during outages or for maintenance. However, if they become regular grid reliability resources, their increased operation could lead to more air pollution and noise. For example, expert testimony concerning the proposed Wildcat Ridge Data Center Campus in Archbald, which would include 588 diesel generators, projected countywide health impacts ranging from $3.3 million to $124 million, depending on generator runtime and emissions controls. An acoustics expert also testified that the noise from these generators could be significantly disruptive to nearby residents during emergencies.