AI data centers just got a government-mandated fast lane to the grid

AI 数据中心获得政府授权的电网接入“快车道”

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) told grid operators on Thursday to fast track interconnection requests from data centers and other large electricity users. Under the orders, six major grid operators have to show that data centers are “able to connect to the transmission system in a timely and orderly manner.” Data centers will be responsible for paying the costs of the interconnection. Commissioners approved the orders unanimously. 美国联邦能源监管委员会（FERC）周四要求电网运营商加快处理数据中心及其他大型电力用户提出的接入申请。根据该指令，六大电网运营商必须证明数据中心能够“及时、有序地接入输电系统”。数据中心将负责承担接入的相关费用。委员会成员一致通过了这些指令。

FERC also provided an opening to grid tech startups, directing grid operators to consider “alternative transmission technologies.” The commission didn’t name specific technologies, but the directive could include things like solid-state transformers or superconducting transmission lines. Grid operators now have 30 days to submit a report detailing how much generating capacity they have to spare, if any. They also have 60 days to “defend or revise” electricity rates within their regions. FERC 还为电网技术初创公司提供了机会，指示电网运营商考虑“替代性输电技术”。委员会并未指明具体技术，但该指令可能涵盖固态变压器或超导输电线路等。电网运营商现在有 30 天的时间提交报告，详细说明其剩余的发电容量（如有）。他们还有 60 天的时间来“辩护或修订”其区域内的电价。

FERC also directed grid operators to be more accommodating to behind-the-meter power for data centers. While FERC’s directives gave data centers a fast lane to connect, they did not address the shortage of generating capacity. Grid connections have been slow to materialize in part because new power plants are also having problems connecting. At the end of 2023, grid connection requests for power plants exceeded the total capacity of the existing power plant fleet, meaning the line to get on the grid was longer than the grid itself could theoretically serve. FERC 还指示电网运营商对数据中心的“表后电源”（behind-the-meter power）采取更包容的态度。虽然 FERC 的指令为数据中心提供了接入快车道，但并未解决发电容量短缺的问题。电网接入进展缓慢，部分原因是新建发电厂在接入时也遇到了困难。截至 2023 年底，发电厂的电网接入申请量已超过现有发电厂的总容量，这意味着排队接入电网的项目比电网理论上能承载的还要多。

Against this backdrop, electricity demand from data centers is expected to nearly triple through 2035. Grid operators, which had grown accustomed to near-zero demand growth over the last two decades, have strained under the load. Some, like PJM, the country’s largest grid operator, have descended into something resembling chaos, with major utilities threatening to withdraw. Tech companies and developers, unable to connect to the grid in a timely manner in many locations, have been turning to on-site, or behind-the-meter, power (which is typically more expensive and complicated) out of desperation. 在此背景下，预计到 2035 年，数据中心的电力需求将增长近两倍。过去二十年来，电网运营商已习惯了近乎零的需求增长，如今在负荷压力下显得捉襟见肘。一些运营商，如美国最大的电网运营商 PJM，已陷入近乎混乱的状态，大型公用事业公司甚至威胁要退出。由于在许多地区无法及时接入电网，科技公司和开发商出于无奈，不得不转向现场供电或“表后电源”（通常更昂贵且复杂）。

Still, enough projects have been able to connect that electricity prices have soared in many regions. Wholesale electricity rates are up as much as 267% compared with five years ago, according to Bloomberg. FERC was prodded to take on the issue by Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, who in October said delays in data center grid connections had threatened to undermine U.S. competitiveness in AI. Since then, public sentiment toward AI and data centers has soured considerably. 尽管如此，仍有足够多的项目成功接入，导致许多地区的电价飙升。据彭博社报道，批发电价较五年前上涨了高达 267%。FERC 之所以被敦促处理这一问题，是因为能源部长克里斯·赖特（Chris Wright）在 10 月份表示，数据中心电网接入的延迟已威胁到美国在人工智能领域的竞争力。自那以后，公众对人工智能和数据中心的情绪已大幅恶化。

Meanwhile, the Trump administration on Wednesday said it would pay $765 million to wind developer Invenergy to cancel offshore wind leases near California, Maine, and New York. The company said it would use the money to build natural gas plants in the Midwest and geothermal projects in the West. One of Invenergy’s wind projects would have generated as much as 2.4 gigawatts of power — enough, at peak output, to supply roughly 1.8 million homes. Altogether, the Trump administration has now spent about $2.6 billion to scuttle offshore wind developments. 与此同时，特朗普政府周三表示，将向风能开发商 Invenergy 支付 7.65 亿美元，以取消其在加利福尼亚州、缅因州和纽约州附近的海上风电租赁合同。该公司表示，将利用这笔资金在中西部建设天然气发电厂，并在西部开展地热项目。Invenergy 的其中一个风电项目本可产生高达 2.4 吉瓦的电力——在峰值输出时，足以供应约 180 万户家庭。总计，特朗普政府目前已花费约 26 亿美元用于搁置海上风电开发项目。