Gov. Greg Abbott released a response on Friday from the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas outlining steps that both agencies are taking to shield residential customers from the costs tied to data center growth.
The response follows a June 10 issued by the governor’s office.
“I directed the Public Utility Commission and ERCOT to protect Texans from the costs of data center expansion and they are putting that direction into action,” Abbott said. “Residential ratepayers will not foot the bill for this industry’s growth. These actions keep electric bills affordable and protect the water our communities need.”
Among the steps identified, the PUCT and ERCOT said data centers will be required to pay for transmission infrastructure built to serve them and to contribute toward reducing residential electric bills. New rules aim to prevent large data centers from pulling existing power away from the ERCOT grid, with priority given to Texas households and communities.
Officials also said they have launched a new interconnection screening process intended to keep data centers from overburdening the grid, and have begun revising how those facilities pay for the infrastructure needed to serve them. ERCOT’s process for evaluating and managing data center development has been strengthened, along with long-term planning efforts.
Additional measures include developing stronger standards data centers must meet before connecting to the grid and mandating that new data centers cut their power use quickly when ERCOT directs them to do so.
The two agencies also recommended legislative action for the upcoming session. Their proposals include expanding the Lone Star Infrastructure Protection Act to cover large data centers, guarding against foreign actors seeking to threaten the state grid. They also urged lawmakers to clarify the authority of the PUCT and ERCOT to impose additional reliability requirements on data centers, and to require data centers to register with both agencies so the state can track their water and electricity use.
Abbott said he will continue working with the Legislature to write the protections into state law.
Provided by Dallas Express
