Flexible Power Use by US Data Centers Is Fiction, Report Says

The idea that data centers can shut down during peak demand times — not requiring the buildout of power plants — is a concept that could cost utility customers billions of dollars, according to a new report.

Proposals to build massive new data campuses that promise to throttle back during grid emergencies without adding new generation are poised to tack on as much as $5.48 billion in annual capacity costs while adding billions more in actual energy costs, according to an analysis Thursday by Monitoring Analytics LLC, the independent market monitor for PJM Interconnection LLC.