Texas Power Grid Demand Expected to Double by 2030
In a Wednesday hearing, experts from The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) told lawmakers that they expected the state’s power demand to double in the next six years, putting more pressure on an already-strained grid. Some of this increase can be attributed to the expansion of existing industries, but a whopping 60% of new demand comes from crypto mining operations and data centers, which require immense amounts of power to run specialized computers. Of course, this kind of growth doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Texas has created strong incentives for the crypto mining industry, including discounted electricity rates and tax breaks. The expansion of generative AI, meanwhile, has fueled demand for sprawling data centers capable of providing computing power to consumers around the world. ERCOT, which operates Texas’s power grid, eventually launched a “demand response program” that allowed crypto mines to sell energy back to the grid during times of intense need – at the expense of normal ratepayers. CfA’s Tech Transparency Project (TTP) investigated this arrangement in a 2022 report, reviewing SEC filings, public utility commission records, industry publications, social media posts, and data from Texas energy authorities. 
 
This week, ERCOT’s new predictions and the possibility of rolling blackouts have made some Texas lawmakers rethink their state’s relationship with datacenters and the crypto industry. On top of their high energy use, many crypto mining initiatives have failed to deliver promised jobs and revenue, as another TTP report found. Some elected officials have begun asking questions about transparency, because ERCOT lacks accurate information about the number of crypto mines in Texas or the amount of power they use. The industry has opposed other efforts to monitor its energy use, claiming the information is proprietary and that their sector had been unfairly singled out.