Texas Governor Seeks Consumer Protection From Data Center Costs

Texas Governor Greg Abbott called on state regulators to better protect ratepayers from shouldering the costs of the data center buildout, the latest sign of growing political scrutiny over the AI-driven surge in electricity demand.

“The rapid scale of data center development requires oversight to ensure everyday Texans are not burdened with the costs of infrastructure driven by data center expansion,” Abbott said in a letter to the Public Utility Commission of Texas, PUC, and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or Ercot, which manages the grid. “More must be done to protect Texans.”

Texas is grappling with an enormous ...