Responding to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's “Bolstering Data Center Growth, Resilience, and Security” request for comment, representatives of the digital infrastructure ecosystem emphasize the need for modernized digital and electrical infrastructure to support the growing demands of artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) in the United States.

The response outlines the challenges, opportunities, and policy recommendations needed to enhance the resilience and scalability of the U.S. digital infrastructure ecosystem.

By James Downing

Utilities and grid operators urged caution on new dynamic line rating requirements while state regulators, consumers and grid enhancing technology firms said they want the mandates.

By Tom Hassenboehler

Electricity load growth increasingly gets cast in a negative light, seen as a strain on resources and infrastructure. However, this perspective overlooks a crucial fact: load growth serves as a powerful indicator of economic vitality and technological progress.

As customers across the world demand the newest digital goods and services, this presents an opportunity for the U.S., home to many of the companies driving this transformation, to lead the digital economy.

By Devin Hartman and Kent Chandler

Instead of fighting the rule, a coordinated effort by states of all stripes to help implement the order will ensure least cost, least regrets transmission planning.

By Joel Leighton

In his testimony, Tom Hassenboehler, Chair of the Advisory Committee at the Electricity Customer Alliance, stressed the national security incentive to ensure America develops “home grown AI” in the near future.

"We need a national urgency to establish the electric infrastructure that can power an AI-enabled future,” Hassenboehler said.

Electricity Customer Alliance

Reliable and affordable electricity is vital to drive the economic engine of artificial intelligence (AI) and the U.S.’ growing digital economy. However, electric power regulation has become an obstacle rather than an enabler of efficient and reliable operation of the grid and its necessary modernization. “The numerous economic benefits that AI offers will be determined by the strength of the electricity delivery system,” said Hassenboehler. “There must be a faster and more coherent way of addressing permitting and multi-state infrastructure development to enable this economic engine to grow and compete with our rivals, particularly China.”

The Biden-Harris Administration

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is building on this momentum by launching a Federal-State Modern Grid Deployment Initiative, with commitments from 21 leading states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai‘i, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin. Building on the Biden-Harris Administration’s legislative accomplishments and executive actions in tackling the grid modernization challenge, the initiative aims to bring together states, federal entities, and power sector stakeholders to help drive grid adaptation quickly and cost-effectively to meet the challenges and opportunities that the power sector faces in the twenty-first century.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

FERC today unanimously approved a rule outlining how it plans to implement its limited authority over siting electricity transmission lines, as amended by Congress in 2021.

Today’s new rule, Order No. 1977, updates the process to be used in the limited circumstances when the Commission is called upon to exercise its siting authority. Order No. 1977 includes a Landowner Bill of Rights, codifies an Applicant Code of Conduct as one way for applicants to demonstrate good-faith efforts to engage with landowners in the permitting process, and directs applicants to develop engagement plans for outreach to environmental justice communities and Tribes. The rule does not adopt the proposal to allow simultaneous processing of state and FERC siting applications.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

FERC acted today to ensure the transmission grid can meet the nation’s growing demand for reliable electricity with a new rule that outlines how to plan and pay for facilities that regions of the country will need to keep the lights on and power the American economy through the 21st Century.

Today’s rule, Order No. 1920, marks the first time in more than a decade that FERC has addressed regional transmission policy – and the first time the Commission has ever squarely addressed the need for long-term transmission planning.

Department of Energy

In a continued commitment to bolster the U.S. power grid, today the Biden-Harris Administration announced a final transmission permitting reform rule and a new commitment for up to $331 million aimed at adding more than 2,000 megawatts (MW) of additional grid capacity throughout the Western United States – the equivalent to powering 2.5 million homes and creating more than 300 new, high quality and union construction jobs. By improving Federal transmission permitting processes and investing in transmission build out and grid upgrades, the Biden-Harris Administration is deploying a multifaceted approach to ensuring that Americans have clean, reliable, and affordable power when and where they need it. These efforts advance the Biden-Harris Administration’s historic climate agenda, strengthen energy security and grid resilience, and reduce energy costs by bringing low-cost clean electricity to more families and businesses.

By Ethan Howland

Dive Insight:

The U.S. interconnection backlog jumped 27% in 2023 over 2022, to 2.6 TW, as projects are moving more slowly through interconnection queues, according to a report released earlier this month by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

“There are new energy projects being developed all over the country and we need to make sure they can get online as quickly as possible,” Cortez Masto said in a press release. “By speeding up the slow and outdated process of connecting new projects to the grid, [the] legislation will lower energy costs for Nevada families and make our grids more reliable.”

Department of Energy, Grid Deployment Office

The Biden-Harris Administration, through the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), today announced up to a total of $10.6 million for six projects to improve state and regional engagement in wholesale electricity markets. The Wholesale Electricity Market Studies and Engagement (WEMSE) Program provides funding to states and regions related to developing, expanding, or improving wholesale electricity markets. This engagement will ensure these stakeholders are able to provide critical insight into market design, expansion, and improvement activities. The six projects announced today will help facilitate the improvement or creation of more efficient and flexible wholesale markets, which will be essential to ensure grid resilience and reliability as new load and generation come online.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

FERC today affirmed its historic July 2023 rule that modernizes the nation’s transmission grid by streamlining the generator interconnection process. The rule, known as Order No. 2023, ensures that resources can connect to the transmission system in a reliable, efficient, transparent and timely manner.

This interconnection rulemaking is the first step in a series of major transmission reforms, and FERC Chairman Willie Phillips said there is more to come this spring.

The Biden-Harris Administration

Today, President Joe Biden announced Willie L. Phillips, Jr. as Chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). FERC is an independent agency that regulates the interstate transmission of natural gas, oil, electricity, and other energy projects. As the Biden Administration works to tackle the climate crisis, advance environmental justice, and create a clean electricity grid by 2035, FERC will maintain an important role in spurring access to reliable, affordable carbon-free energy moving across the country.

By Tom Hassenboehler and Rob Gramlich

From Arizona to the Carolinas and the Midwest, the U.S. is experiencing a resurgence of domestic manufacturing, largely driven by the growing needs of America’s digital economy. This resurgence is boosting economic development, increasing the number of high-quality jobs, and addressing the imbalance within our existing supply chains.

Alongside this new growth, an emerging challenge is facing the country. For companies to invest and expand operations in the U.S., they need an ever-increasing number of reliable and clean electrons to power their supply, information technology infrastructure, and skilled workforce.

However, the U.S. electric grid is not prepared for this significant load growth. After two decades of stagnant load growth forecasts, grid planners are being caught off guard by the near doubling of five-year load growth forecasts. These developments are reflected in the first nationwide compilation of utility load growth forecasts, compiled by Grid Strategies, which is based on official forecasts filed by over 60 planning areas with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).

By Jennifer Hiller

Everything is bigger in Texas, including its electricity use, which is increasing at historic rates in a sign of what is to come for much of the U.S.

The country’s largest electricity producer and user saw sales grow at five times the national rate for the past decade, roughly like adding Louisiana. A crushing heat wave this summer broke 10 peak demand records for the main Texas grid operator, which narrowly avoided blackouts one hot evening.

Texas is an extreme example with a big population that needs a lot of air conditioning, but it is also at the center of trends pushing electricity use higher in pockets of the country: the reshoring of manufacturing, the growth of power-hungry data centers and a push to electrification.

Department of Energy, Grid Deployment Office

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced a $9 million investment to improve state and regional participation in wholesale electricity markets. Engaging state and regional utilities and system operators in wholesale markets can decrease their cost of electricity, often lowering energy bills for consumers. Administered by DOE’s Grid Deployment Office, the Wholesale Electricity Market Studies and Engagement Program (WEMSE) will provide technical and financial assistance to states and regional system operators to develop, expand, and improve wholesale electricity markets. This engagement will ensure these stakeholders are able to provide critical insight into market design, expansion, and improvement activities, including interregional transmission infrastructure development.

Department of Energy

As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced two states and three tribal nations will receive a combined total of $34 million as the fifth cohort of Grid Resilience State and Tribal Formula Grants. Supported by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and administered by DOE’s Grid Deployment Office, these grants will help modernize the electric grid to reduce impacts of climate-driven extreme weather and natural disasters while also ensuring power sector reliability.

Department of Energy

WASHINGTON, D.C.—To bring microgrid solutions to underserved and Indigenous communities, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced a $14.7 million Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for multi-year research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) of microgrid-related technologies. The goal is to bring microgrid solutions to underserved and Indigenous communities in remote, rural, and islanded regions in the United States. Programs such as this will ensure that low-cost reliable, resilient, clean energy is available to support and improve the lives of every American.

With this FOA, DOE’s Office of Electricity's research partners will develop and demonstrate advanced microgrid-enabling technologies, including renewable generation and storage systems, multi-nodal small-scale high-voltage direct current, advanced demand-side management strategies, and microgrid control systems. The FOA also includes opportunities to address non-technical barriers to deployment of microgrids in these communities, such as lack of local technical expertise and supply chain challenges.

Department of Energy

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced nine states and three tribal nations as the third cohort to receive a combined total of $207.6 million in Grid Resilience State and Tribal Formula Grants. Supported by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and administered by DOE’s Grid Deployment Office, these grants will help modernize the electric grid to reduce impacts of climate-driven extreme weather and natural disasters while also ensuring power sector reliability. This funding will ensure all communities have access to affordable, reliable, clean electricity while helping deliver on the President’s ambitious clean energy goals.