4 ms·

Power bills more than 250 per cent higher near data centres

37 points by cdrnsf 5mo ago

butvacuum 5mo ago
I can't see the article- but a little research on ERCOT's wholesale pricing maps reveals two things: 1) today's prices are somewhere between -$200 and +$200 and 2) theres 900+ discrete pricing locales in Texas. And, here's a bit of reading on the process for a customer requiring >75MW: https://www.dlapiper.com/en-us/insights/publications/2026/03/texas-proposes-new-interconnection-standards-for-large-electric-loads https://www.dlapiper.com/en-us/insights/publications/2026/03...
jml7c5 5mo ago
Searching for "267%", I think the source of this claim is a misinterpretation of Bloomberg's September article on datacenters: https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2025-ai-data-centers-electricity-prices/ https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2025-ai-data-centers-elec... I that article, 267% represents the highest increase seen. It's not any sort of average. It's odd that it's reappeared in this article now.
- danlugo92 5mo ago
  "yeah the government is bankrupting us to death but it's only in some zip codes so it's all cool" Not to mention electricity prices have already gone up such a similar percentage since 2020 already, so those people are already looking at a 500% increase versus say 2020, and their salaries have not gone up that percentage I can bet a finger.
  - jml7c5 5mo ago
    The 267% number is the rise from 2020-2025, so it already includes that.
refurb 5mo ago
The headlines say more about where data centers are built and less around case and effect
dpoloncsak 5mo ago
Non-paywalled: https://web.archive.org/web/20260527033649/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/investing/investment-ideas/article-market-factors-power-bills-more-than-250-per-cent-higher-near-data/ https://web.archive.org/web/20260527033649/https://www.thegl... It's frustrating seeing this issue framed as a big tech issue, and not as an issue of government refusing to govern. Not only are local governments welcoming these data centers, but they're giving them tax breaks to move into town. If it's going to cause the quality of life of your citizens to supply these data centers with water/power, the least you could do is not give them a tax break for doing so.
- nobodyandproud 5mo ago
  Wave more money than the GDP of your entire town or region. Let’s stop pretending money doesn’t give a disproportionate amount of influence to a representative government, before things get perpetually violent.
  - dpoloncsak 5mo ago
    Agreed, but again, my issue is not at companies buying influence, but politicians selling it. The companies would be dumb not to, as there will be someone else who will. Politicians are put there specifically to govern this, and instead are selling influence. There is no accountability for them.
    - nobodyandproud 5mo ago
      They go hand-in-hand and you should have a problem with the companies. Politicians listen to lobbyists, who are funded by those with the most resources and time, because they’re the ones actively communicating with the politicians. The ones with the resources and time to hire these lobbyists are not the lower, middle, or even upper-middle incomes who normally don’t have time to do it themselves nor the money to hire. If you don’t want politicians to listen to the graft, then consider the market-driven source of the problem. Pinning it on the politicians sweeps the root cause under the rug.

37 points by cdrnsf 5mo ago

I can't see the article- but a little research on ERCOT's wholesale pricing maps reveals two things: 1) today's prices are somewhere between -$200 and +$200 and 2) theres 900+ discrete pricing locales in Texas. And, here's a bit of reading on the process for a customer requiring >75MW: https://www.dlapiper.com/en-us/insights/publications/2026/03/texas-proposes-new-interconnection-standards-for-large-electric-loads https://www.dlapiper.com/en-us/insights/publications/2026/03...

jml7c5 5mo ago

Searching for "267%", I think the source of this claim is a misinterpretation of Bloomberg's September article on datacenters: https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2025-ai-data-centers-electricity-prices/ https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2025-ai-data-centers-elec... I that article, 267% represents the highest increase seen. It's not any sort of average. It's odd that it's reappeared in this article now.

danlugo92 5mo ago
"yeah the government is bankrupting us to death but it's only in some zip codes so it's all cool" Not to mention electricity prices have already gone up such a similar percentage since 2020 already, so those people are already looking at a 500% increase versus say 2020, and their salaries have not gone up that percentage I can bet a finger.
- jml7c5 5mo ago
  The 267% number is the rise from 2020-2025, so it already includes that.

refurb 5mo ago

The headlines say more about where data centers are built and less around case and effect

dpoloncsak 5mo ago

Non-paywalled: https://web.archive.org/web/20260527033649/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/investing/investment-ideas/article-market-factors-power-bills-more-than-250-per-cent-higher-near-data/ https://web.archive.org/web/20260527033649/https://www.thegl... It's frustrating seeing this issue framed as a big tech issue, and not as an issue of government refusing to govern. Not only are local governments welcoming these data centers, but they're giving them tax breaks to move into town. If it's going to cause the quality of life of your citizens to supply these data centers with water/power, the least you could do is not give them a tax break for doing so.

nobodyandproud 5mo ago
Wave more money than the GDP of your entire town or region. Let’s stop pretending money doesn’t give a disproportionate amount of influence to a representative government, before things get perpetually violent.
- dpoloncsak 5mo ago
  Agreed, but again, my issue is not at companies buying influence, but politicians selling it. The companies would be dumb not to, as there will be someone else who will. Politicians are put there specifically to govern this, and instead are selling influence. There is no accountability for them.
  - nobodyandproud 5mo ago
    They go hand-in-hand and you should have a problem with the companies. Politicians listen to lobbyists, who are funded by those with the most resources and time, because they’re the ones actively communicating with the politicians. The ones with the resources and time to hire these lobbyists are not the lower, middle, or even upper-middle incomes who normally don’t have time to do it themselves nor the money to hire. If you don’t want politicians to listen to the graft, then consider the market-driven source of the problem. Pinning it on the politicians sweeps the root cause under the rug.