Big tech and its data centers are upending the electric utility world. Data centers aren’t only demanding and using more and more power, but they are also changing the structure of the industry.

They are a force throughout the system behind the meter, in front of the meter, and as a driver for more nuclear (both fission and fusion), renewables and any carbon-free electricity.

They are a hegemon to be reckoned with. They have tremendous financial resources, political influence and are certain of their role in reshaping the future with artificial intelligence.

Along the way, they are reshaping the electric utility industry:

• They provide endless demand for steady 24/7 power, and they are precise about the nature of that power: They are historically carbon-adverse, reluctant about fossil fuels.
• They are a force in the future technologies that will shape the utilities; nuclear, wind, solar and batteries.

Note this: Batteries have gained a new essentiality. Not only do they undergird the utilities in times of stress and help them through the high-demand hours at the end of the day, but they also are incorporated into every data center, silently supporting the ability of the centers to operate, even during periods of power failure.

But batteries and their role in the U.S. electricity system need regulatory reform. They need to be recognized as separate components with their value and pricing determined according by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and state regulators.

Some utilities and the battery industry are lobbying for this reform — and the pressure is rising.

The role of big tech as generators is a threat to the old order. There is concern in some quarters that the big tech companies, in their hunger for green power, are buying up the output of wind and solar farms, and solar installations.

The role of data centers and the reshaping of the electric utility industry by the big tech companies and their needs will be examined at the next United States Energy Association virtual press briefing on Wednesday, August 20, at 11 a.m. EDT.

As usual, a panel of senior journalists who write about energy will question a panel of experts. This time, the experts will be from the data centers, the big techs, and the utilities that serve them and are being transformed by them.

The good and the bad are both bound to come up. PG&E is hoping that by serving small data centers, it can reduce rates, while others fear rates will have to rise with all of the new demand-driven construction.

The Experts:

• Karen Ornelas, Director, Large Load Program Management, Pacific Gas & Electric
• Bud Albright, Senior Adviser on Energy, National AI Association
• Derek Bentley, Partner, Solomon Partners
• Clinton Vince, Head of the U.S. Energy Practice, Dentons
• Jeff Weiss, Executive Chairman, Distributed Sun and truCurrent
• John Howes, Principal, Redland Energy Group
• Tom Wilson, Principal Technical Executive, EPRI
• Tom Falcone, President, Large Public Power Council

The Journalists:

• Jennifer Hiller, The Wall Street Journal
• Ken Silverstein, Forbes
• Timothy Gardner, Reuters
• Peter Behr, Politico’s E&E News
• Matt Chester, Energy Central

Natural gas, always a favorite with electric utilities, has been lifted to dominance in the energy mix by the Trump administration. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright has roundly attacked the economics and viability of wind and solar energy, most recently in an op-ed in the New York Post.

Wright will get pushback from utilities and the renewable energy industry, but for practical purposes going forward the United States is committed to reliance on oil, coal and natural gas: the fossil fuel triumvirate. Nuclear power also gets DOE’s nod. Oil is unlikely to be a primary fuel for utilities, except in rare emergencies. Coal has prescribed limits. They include the disinclination of utilities to build new coal plants or to encourage the opening of new mines. They fear new coal is a liability and could become a stranded asset under a different administration. Natural gas is the favored fuel of utilities on cost, ease of installation, maintenance and reliability. But it has some problems. Natural gas produces greenhouse gases, has pipeline leakage problems, and is opposed by states and localities seeking a zero-emissions future.

Potential legal battles are forming over the use of natural gas in some locations where state law has mandated only renewables going forward. Building new pipelines — desperately needed to get natural gas from the shale fields where it is abundant to the markets where it is needed — is as hard as it is to build new transmission lines, harder in most cases. Environmentalists, heavily committed to renewables, are opposed to natural gas but like it more than coal. However, Louisiana has declared natural gas a green fuel and this is a growing trend. There have been similar suggestions of reclassification in Europe.

Carbon capture — in the early stage at some utilities — may give natural gas recognition as a green fuel. Meanwhile natural gas is the new king in electricity generation, usurping its cousin, coal. The supply is plentiful. The need is palpable. The electric utility acceptance is near-universal. Trump administration support is overwhelming. Beyond gas delivery, turbines and other supply chain items are in short supply and subject to delivery times of up to five years; siting is still a local matter; and concern over global warming grows exponentially.

The United States Energy Association, which is fuel-neutral, will examine natural gas and its future here and abroad at its next virtual press briefing on Wednesday, July 9, at 11 a.m. EDT.
As usual, a panel of senior journalists who cover energy will interview a panel of industry experts on the subject before the house.

Llewellyn King, syndicated columnist and broadcaster, has organized and will moderate the briefing. USEA President and CEO Mark Menezes, a former Deputy Secretary of Energy, will be on hand to contribute his deep knowledge of energy.

The Experts:

• Rudy Garza, President and CEO, CPS Energy, San Antonio
• Branko Milicevic, Secretary, Group of Experts on Gas, UN Economic Commission for Europe
• Austin Hastings, Vice President, Gas Engineering, PG&E
• Michael Caravaggio, Vice President, Energy Supply, EPRI
• Dustin Meyer, Senior Vice President, Policy, Economics & Regulatory Affairs, API
• Diana Furchtgott-Roth, director, Center for Energy, Climate and Environment, The Heritage Foundation

The Reporters:

• Rod Kuckro, Freelance
• Tim Gardner, Reuters
• Ken Silverstein, Forbes
• Matt Chester, Energy Central
• Peter Behr, Politico’s E&E News
• Alex Procyk, Oil & Gas Journal
• Adam Clayton Powell III, PBS

There was already a feeling in the nuclear power industry that a great leap in the fortunes of the industry was at hand. But President Donald Trump has escalated those hopes with four executive orders.Trump seeks to cut the time it takes to get a reactor license to a short 18 months. He is calling for the construction of 10 large reactors of the type now in use. And he is endorsing everything along the nuclear power chain, from uranium mining to waste disposal to the deployment of small modular reactors.In all, the president wants to quadruple nuclear power production by 2050.It is exciting. It is breathtaking. It is dramatic. It is needed.But is it feasible?Definitely some new reactors are likely to be built, driven by the big tech companies that are desperate for the power for their data centers and prepared to use some of their wealth to that end. Witness Microsoft’s commitment to restarting the undamaged reactor at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania, and Meta’s commitment to extend the life of the Clinton Plant in Illinois by 20 years.The question is whether the big techs go all the way and change the landscape by commissioning new-build nuclear plants. Also, will the administration provide “backstop” guarantees for first-of-a-kind new plants, especially SMRs?The United States Energy Association’s virtual press briefing, set for Wednesday, June 11, at 11 a.m. EDT, will examine the new golden age of nuclear power when senior reporters who cover energy will question nuclear power experts in a collegial atmosphere.These briefings, which are broadcast live on Zoom, are open to the press and the public. They are free, but registration is required.Following the briefings, a recording is available on the USEA website usea.org and the Energy Central website energycentral.com. Also, recordings can be found on Apple and Spotify.The briefings are organized and moderated by Llewellyn King in collaboration with USEA President and CEO Mark Menezes.On the June 11 expert panel:James Schaefer, Guggenheim PartnersScott Hunnewell, VP of New Nuclear, TVACyril Draffin, Senior Fellow for Advanced Nuclear, U.S. Nuclear Industry CouncilShanthi Muthiah, Managing Director and Senior VP, ICFJames Walker, CEO, NANO NuclearSteve Chengelis, VP, Energy Supply and Nuclear Development, EPRIBenton Arnett, Senior Director of Markets and Policy, NEIThe reporter panel:Matthew Daly, The Associated PressJennifer Hiller, The Wall Street JournalTim Gardner, ReutersMatt Chester, Energy CentralWilliam Freebairn, S&P GlobalMarkham Hislop, Energi (Canada)