The Virginia State Corporation Commission spent a full day looking at how growing demand from data centers is impacting the commonwealth's electric grid and rates.

The electric power industry must step up to meet growing power demand and continue to build a system the country needs, said Javier Fernandez, CEO of the Omaha Public Power District. "This is one place where we cannot afford to fail. We cannot afford to delay infrastructure."

FERC received comments on its recent technical conference on co-located load in which parties offered suggestions for how the commission should move forward in dealing with the emerging issue.

"Deep, collaborative partnerships combined with creative problem-solving are the only way we can meet the explosion of AI growth, as well as society's accelerating electricity demand," said Sheldon Kimber, CEO of Intersect Power.

A common refrain at FERC’s technical conference on the co-location of data centers was that the issue is just part the broader problem of resource adequacy.

MISO Independent Market Monitor David Patton has made a final stand against the RTO’s $21.8 billion long-range transmission plan, while members are advising the MISO Board of Directors that the IMM's opinions on transmission shouldn't hold water.

EPRI launched its DCFlex initiative, which is meant to maximize demand flexibility from data centers to help them more quickly plug into the grid and provide demand response for emergencies.

The volume of data center load growth in the U.S. will depend on how things play out in the broader economy, a Google representative told a gathering of Western state energy officials.

The war in the Ukraine, coupled with the boom in electricity demand driven by data centers, has created a “muscular resurgence” of interest in nuclear, National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi said.