Getting your news
Attempting to reconnect
Finding the latest in Climate
Hang in there while we load your news feed
Texas Data Center Intel
Latest data center news, projects, power and policy across Texas — updated daily.
Recent Texas data center news
-
Bipartisan Ohio senators introduce community solar legislation
Ohio State Senators Mark Romanchuk (R-Ontario) and Kent Smith (D-Euclid) introduced SB 231 to establish a community energy distributed generation pilot program in Ohio (companion bill HB 303 introduced by Reps. Jim Hoops and Sharon Ray).
- Program details & legislative action: SB 231 / HB 303 would create a distributed generation pilot program enabling community energy (including community solar) to secure in‑state generation subject to local planning and zoning, allowing projects to be sited years ahead of typical time frames for other generation sources; SB 231 is presented as a bipartisan proposal and a CCSA news item/press release endorses the measure.
- Analyses & financial figures: A 2023 Ohio University analysis estimates the Ohio Community Solar Pilot Program could contribute $3.49 billion GSP, 27,254 job‑years, $2.48 billion in total earnings, and $409.5 million in local tax revenue over its lifetime; an analysis by Karl R. Rábago indicates the legislation’s costs would be offset by program benefits from “avoided costs” alone.
-
Why Your Electricity Bill Is So High
The NRDC article explains how rising electricity bills in the U.S. are driven by aging fossil fuel power plants, policy decisions favoring costly and inefficient energy sources, and the growing electricity demand from AI and data centers.
- Key facts: The Plant Vogtle nuclear project in Georgia cost $35 billion, $17 billion over budget, causing a 24% rate increase for customers; PJM grid delays in connecting 286 GW of renewables led to a 600% price increase affecting 67 million people; the Inflation Reduction Act had supported renewables but recent federal policies are rolling back incentives and promoting fossil fuels.
- Confirmed impacts: Electricity prices rose 13% nationally from 2022 to 2025; AI and data centers could consume 5-9% of U.S. electricity by 2030; repeal of clean energy incentives may increase household energy costs by up to $430 annually by 2035.
-
We expect rapid electricity demand growth in Texas and the mid-Atlantic
The U.S. Energy Information Administration has announced forecasts of rapid electricity demand growth in Texas and the mid-Atlantic regions for 2025 and 2026.
- ERCOT region (Texas and neighboring states) electricity demand expected to grow by 7% in 2025 and 14% in 2026, driven by new data centers and cryptocurrency mining facilities; broader West South Central Census Division sales forecasted to grow 5% in 2025 and 9% in 2026.
- PJM Interconnection region (13 states including Northern Virginia) electricity sales projected to increase by 3% in 2025 and 4% in 2026, with Northern Virginia noted for the highest concentration of data centers globally; forecasts incorporate monthly projections from ERCOT and PJM.
-
Flexible Data Centers and the Grid: Lower Costs, Higher Emissions? -- by Christopher R. Knittel, Juan Ramon L. Senga, Shen Wang
The National Bureau of Economic Research published a working paper analyzing the impact of flexible data centers on electricity grid operations and emissions in three U.S. regions.
- The study models power systems in Mid-Atlantic, Texas, and WECC regions, showing that flexible data centers reduce system costs by shifting loads from peak to off-peak hours and supporting renewable and baseload resources.
- Emissions impact varies: higher renewable penetration enhances emissions reduction potential, while lower renewable shares may increase emissions due to baseload generation reliance.
-
Catastrophe Bond Market On Track to Surpass $20B | Data ReFined #58
This newsletter edition from dClimate provides a comprehensive update on climate risk management, voluntary carbon markets, and climate intelligence.
- Catastrophe bond issuance is on track to surpass $20 billion in 2025, with $17.8 billion already issued, highlighting growing financial mechanisms for climate resilience.
- Reports cover physical climate risks to data centers globally, natural catastrophe economic losses estimated at $151 billion in H1 2025, and evolving voluntary carbon market compliance standards, alongside new high-resolution climate data availability from NASA and Land & Carbon Lab.
-
How AI is impacting the adoption cycles of hydrogen and fuel cells
The article announces the growing role of hydrogen fuel cells as a clean, reliable, and scalable power solution for AI infrastructure.
- Hydrogen fuel cells provide zero-emission, grid-independent power and can flexibly support data centers facing grid capacity constraints, with deployments by companies like Microsoft, Equinix, and Google.
- Renewable hydrogen production costs have dropped over 60% since 2010, supported by policies such as the US Inflation Reduction Act and hydrogen roadmaps in Europe and Asia, enabling broader adoption in AI data centers and hybrid energy models.
-
Experts react: What Trump’s new AI Action Plan means for tech, energy, the economy, and more
The Trump administration has announced a new AI Action Plan focused on accelerating AI innovation, infrastructure, and international leadership.
- The plan emphasizes deregulation, export of full AI technology stacks to allies, and investment in AI infrastructure including data centers and energy grid upgrades, with bipartisan support for expanding electricity transmission and funding advanced battery technologies.
- Experts highlight challenges including implementation funding, international cooperation on AI governance, tensions between proprietary and open-source AI models, and the need for trust-based alliances rather than dominance; the plan also contrasts with EU and UK AI strategies, particularly on regulatory approaches and global standards.
-
Protected: Where the Power Flows: The Top 10 Hyperscale Data Centers by Load in North America — Powered by Enverus Instant Analyst™
Enverus has announced insights into the top 10 largest hyperscale data centers by load in North America, highlighting key locations and their energy consumption.
- Top data centers include Microsoft Azure, Meta, Vantage Data Centers, and Colocation America with loads ranging from 590 MW to 1,862 MW.
- Enverus offers tools like Instant Analyst™ and PRISM™ to accelerate data center siting by analyzing power demand, pricing, and land suitability, supporting faster and more informed infrastructure development.
-
Data centers seek flexible power solutions for resilience, sustainability
-
GM to put new and used EV batteries in Redwood Energy storage systems
General Motors has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Redwood Materials to accelerate deployment of energy storage systems using both new and second-life GM batteries.
- Redwood Materials launched Redwood Energy in June 2025 to deploy used EV packs and new modules into fast, low-cost energy-storage systems, targeting surging power demand from AI data centers and other applications.
- GM second-life EV batteries are being used in a 12-MW/63-MWh installation in Sparks, Nevada, supporting AI infrastructure company Crusoe, which is expected to be the largest second-life battery development in the world.