00:00Electric companies are saying when they power a big tech data center,
00:03it helps you save money on your monthly bill.
00:06Your power company also profits from data centers.
00:09So what are the facts?
00:11I'm Keaton Peters, energy reporter for Straight Arrow.
00:15Here's the pitch.
00:15The grid costs a fixed amount to keep running hundreds of miles of power lines and substations.
00:21Much like adding a new roommate lowers everyone's rents,
00:24utility companies say bringing enormous new customers onto the grid
00:28will lower residents' share of those fixed costs.
00:31But that is not the whole story.
00:33Maintenance costs are only one part of your monthly bill.
00:36At times, data centers are driving up the price of actual electricity.
00:41On America's largest power grid,
00:43data centers have added over $23 billion to how much electricity costs.
00:47A utility in Iowa said data centers got their customers a five-year freeze on base rates,
00:52but bills went up anyway.
00:54The White House got everyone to sign a pledge that big tech would cover these
00:58costs, but it's non-binding.
01:00I took a deep dive into how data centers affect the grid and your electric bill on san.com.
Comments