The high demand for electricity-intensive data centers and clean-tech factories across the U.S. poses a significant risk to our national power supply and the aging power grid. As demand skyrockets—like in Georgia, where projected industrial electricity use has surged 17-fold in just a decade—utilities and regulators are scrambling to address the limitations of our aging grid.
In states like Arizona and Texas, utility companies are warning of potential capacity shortages, while regions such as Northern Virginia face demands equivalent to needing multiple large nuclear plants. Energy demands like these examples can be found across the country. This unprecedented surge is fueled by advancements in artificial intelligence and the crypto-mining industry, further straining an already overtaxed system.
As we prioritize the transition to cleaner energy, we must also confront the reality that current infrastructure may not meet future needs. The challenge of expanding the grid is compounded by regulatory hurdles and rising tensions over who will bear the costs of necessary upgrades—residential customers or large commercial enterprises
Powder Watts has uncovered the nation’s largest unmanaged drain on the power grid, 20 million unmanaged locations that consume 140Twh of power every year. Powder Watts solutions return as much power to the national grid as solar produces each year. By monitoring the on/off cycles of heat cables to turn them on only when needed and only for as long as needed we return a vast amount of currently unmanaged power to the grid, drastically reduce load requirements, move load calls to off-peak times, and create a new resource for utility companies to solve this urgent issue.
To avoid missing out on economic opportunities and to achieve our climate goals, it is imperative that we develop a robust and strategic approach to energy infrastructure. This includes reevaluating incentives for data centers, streamlining the regulatory process for new projects, and investing in innovative solutions like microgrids and off-grid technologies.
The Biden administration has identified easing grid bottlenecks as a priority, but significant challenges remain. As demands on the power grid increase, we must work collaboratively across states and sectors to ensure a reliable and sustainable energy future for all Americans.
