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US Grid Constraints: Towards 40GW+ of Behind-the-Meter Datacenter by 2028?

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Re: US Grid Constraints: Towards 40GW+ of Behind-the-Meter Datacenter by 2028?

#11

Post by trhway »

marcyb5st wrote: post #5
alex_duf wrote: post #3

What an absolute ecological disaster. If bubble there is, now would be a great time for it to pop.

And especially terrible for the communities that have to live with gas turbines or other local power generators as neighbors. Noise and air pollution constantly [1]. But fuck them, they are poor people so we don't care about them /s . Additionally, people against data centers are accused of being paid by China [2] [1] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/feb/13/elon-mus... [2] https://fortune.com/2026/06/10/k…

you can't put an ADU, yet, you can put in 200MW generating capacity.

Re: US Grid Constraints: Towards 40GW+ of Behind-the-Meter Datacenter by 2028?

#12

Post by clarionbell »

trhway wrote: post #4
alex_duf wrote: post #3

What an absolute ecological disaster. If bubble there is, now would be a great time for it to pop.

Alternatively the crisis can be used to accelerate right development - quickly build up solar farms and transmission lines. Both of these can be done quickly if there were a political will. Yet, that will is missing. So, we're talking 40GW. Lets see what China does: https://energyandcleanair.org/china-energy-and-emissions-tre... "In the first two months of 2026, China added: 32.5 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacit…

I like how balanced their energy mix is. It is very obvious that China is optimizing for capacity and availability. There isn't really a push for clean energy sources for political, or climate, reasons. They are deployed when it makes sense, backed up by robust coal and nuclear sources.

In Europe, we approach energy generation as a political, or climate problem. We are building solar and wind power sources, not to make energy cheaper, or to make grid more resilient, but to fulfill an ideological goal.

The results are, not great, to be honest. The energy prices have increased substantially, and are now driving our chemical industry bankrupt.

Edit: I do not dispute the climate change. I am only highlighting impacts of current policy.

Re: US Grid Constraints: Towards 40GW+ of Behind-the-Meter Datacenter by 2028?

#13

Post by spacington »

trhway wrote: post #4
alex_duf wrote: post #3

What an absolute ecological disaster. If bubble there is, now would be a great time for it to pop.

Alternatively the crisis can be used to accelerate right development - quickly build up solar farms and transmission lines. Both of these can be done quickly if there were a political will. Yet, that will is missing. So, we're talking 40GW. Lets see what China does: https://energyandcleanair.org/china-energy-and-emissions-tre... "In the first two months of 2026, China added: 32.5 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacit…

Yeah and the richest person on the planet with full vertical integration (with partner) Elon musk and Tesla aka solar roof and power wall wants to sell DC in space and hasn't fixed any use of gas turbine for Colossus 1&2.

Without enforcement it will happen continuously with snail pace

Re: US Grid Constraints: Towards 40GW+ of Behind-the-Meter Datacenter by 2028?

#16

Post by spacington »

PunchyHamster wrote: post #6
trhway wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Alternatively the crisis can be used to accelerate right development - quickly build up solar farms and transmission lines. Both of these can be done quickly if there were a political will. Yet, that will is missing. So, we're talking 40GW. Lets see what China does: https://energyandcleanair.org/china-energy-and-emissions-tre... "In the first two months of 2026, China added: 32.5 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacit…

solar farms are worst kind of power source for constant loads like datacenters running AI training

Solar power still can take a certain amount of load from any other source and saving money and CO2 while doing so.

And grid battery works and is cheap enough now.

Re: US Grid Constraints: Towards 40GW+ of Behind-the-Meter Datacenter by 2028?

#17

Post by adornKey »

PunchyHamster wrote: post #6
trhway wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Alternatively the crisis can be used to accelerate right development - quickly build up solar farms and transmission lines. Both of these can be done quickly if there were a political will. Yet, that will is missing. So, we're talking 40GW. Lets see what China does: https://energyandcleanair.org/china-energy-and-emissions-tre... "In the first two months of 2026, China added: 32.5 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacit…

solar farms are worst kind of power source for constant loads like datacenters running AI training

Why? Unlike loads involving a real physical process there is absolutely no need for AI-training to be constant.

Re: US Grid Constraints: Towards 40GW+ of Behind-the-Meter Datacenter by 2028?

#18

Post by rapsey »

alex_duf wrote: post #3

What an absolute ecological disaster. If bubble there is, now would be a great time for it to pop.

This is a defeatist EU attitude that leads to the worse outcomes. Expensive power and a failing economy.

There is money now for a huge investment boom, which is what is happening in the US and China. With EU failing completely.

Re: US Grid Constraints: Towards 40GW+ of Behind-the-Meter Datacenter by 2028?

#19

Post by Humorist2290 »

Interesting analysis. In it they say

  Worse, the burden [generating energy] increasingly falls on the buyer [data center developers]
I don't believe this is worse, but appropriate. The grid is a shared resource, used by enterprise and individuals. If some class of consumers demand an outsized share of that resource, they should pay an outsized share of its maintenance and development. I don't see that happening.

It's as if trucking companies flooded the highways with so many trucks that people couldn't commute to work anymore.

Re: US Grid Constraints: Towards 40GW+ of Behind-the-Meter Datacenter by 2028?

#20

Post by logicchains »

rapsey wrote: post #18
alex_duf wrote: post #3

What an absolute ecological disaster. If bubble there is, now would be a great time for it to pop.

This is a defeatist EU attitude that leads to the worse outcomes. Expensive power and a failing economy. There is money now for a huge investment boom, which is what is happening in the US and China. With EU failing completely.

>There is money now for a huge investment boom

Not in western Europe, because they spent almost all their excess economic output over the past few decades on welfare/transfer payments.

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