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.

“The assertion that ...