Governor Greg Abbott has ordered a crackdown on data centers in Texas, which have been causing a backlash from the public over worries about higher electricity bills.
There are already hundreds of data centers in Texas and there are many more planned, but the governor on Monday ordered ERCOT, the state electric grid, and the agency that oversees it, the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC), to immediately begin an audit of all the centers that eventually plan to join the ERCOT system.
The PUC has already adopted new rules that require data centers to provide payment for new electricity connections and submit to screenings about their power usage.
“Any project that fails to comply with the requirements set forth by the PUCT and ERCOT, and by state law, must be denied connection to the Texas grid. Simply put, Texans must come first.”
Gov. Abbott has ordered the two agencies to require new ways for companies to verify their electricity use.
They'll also have to list the ways they plan to use water and keep the data centers cool (such facilities use large amounts of water), how much electricity they plan to use, explain any local tax breaks that have been agreed to, detailed listing of ownership, and how the data center owners plan to minimize the impact their use of enormous quantities of electricity will have on local communities.
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